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Taipower to remove 800 transformers from Taipei

Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) yesterday agreed to remove more than 800 transformer boxes from the streets of Taipei as well as adhere to other demands made by the Taipei City Government in return for the city’s support for the construction of four new substations.

The construction of the four substations, in Guting (古亭), Daan (大安), Songhu (松湖) and Yucheng (玉成), have all been delayed because of resistance from nearby residents.

Representatives from Taipower visited Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday to request city government assistance in facilitating the construction of the substations.

Hau thanked Taipower for providing electricity to the city and offered the city government’s support for the company’s plans to continue providing sufficient electricity while ensuring the safety of residents. However, no practical solutions to the controversial construction of substations were offered during the meeting.

Chen Yung-ren (陳永仁), vice secretariat of the city government, said the city expected Taipower to put greater efforts into meeting local residents and seeking their consensus before proceeding with the construction work.

In addition to putting the transformer boxes underground, the company also agreed to join efforts with the city government’s energy-saving team and refrain from unannounced road construction.

Taipower spokeswoman Tu Yueh-yuan (杜悅元) said the company needs to build the Songhu substation in Neihu first to meet the growing electricity demand in the area.

The supply of electricity in Neihu and Nangang currently relies on a substation in Sijhih (汐止), Tu said.

Residents in Neihu may experience restrictions in electricity supply if Taipower fails to build the Songhu substation soon, she said.

“Taipei City consumes a great amount of electricity, but there are no substations in the city. We need to build substations in the city to provide sufficient electricity,” she said yesterday after a closed-door meeting at Taipei City Hall.

Tu said both the Guting and Daan substations would be built underground to prevent them from affecting the city landscape.

The construction of the Yucheng substation was mapped out to meet the demands of the Nangang Economic Trade Park and urban planning projects in the district.

Tu said the company would hold more public hearings in order to seek consensus from residents and discuss the issue with the city government.
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