President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday said Taiwan must continue to use natural gas and other energy resources to meet the nation’s power requirements, saying renewable energy had limitations in a visit to a Penghu County wind farm.
The county established 14 wind power turbines at Jhongtun Village (中屯) and Husi Township (湖西) to generate wind power. State-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) said the two power stations could generate 10,000 watts, accounting for about one-quarter of the island’s energy demand.
Ma yesterday inspected the power station at Jhongtun Village and discussed energy issues with a group of students in a local forum. While lauding the county as the best location to generate wind power in Asia thanks to strong winds in the area, Ma said renewable energy cannot fully replace natural gas and other energy sources.
“Renewable energy has its limitations. Natural gas and other fuels are still necessary to provide baseload power and meet peak demand when the wind is not strong enough,” he told the forum held at Makong High School.
Ma said the development of renewable energy is a global trend, and his administration has aimed to diversify the nation’s energy supply.
The government passed the Renewable Energy Development Act (再生能源發展條例) in 2009 to develop renewable energy, including the establishment of wind power stations and solar power panels around the nation, he said.
Ma’s comments came amid demands for the government to suspend the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮). Former Democratic Progressive Party chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday reiterated calls for Ma to suspend the construction of the power plant immediately to respond to public demand for a a nuclear-free homeland.
When inspecting the wind power station in Penghu, Ma repeated that building a nuclear-free homeland is a goal of the Basic Environment Act (環境基本法), and that the government is pursuing this goal, while keeping electricity prices at an acceptable level and not disrupting power supplies.
AGING: While Japan has 22 submarines, Taiwan only operates four, two of which were commissioned by the US in 1945 and 1946, and transferred to Taiwan in 1973 Taiwan would need at least 12 submarines to reach modern fleet capabilities, CSBC Corp, Taiwan chairman Chen Cheng-hung (陳政宏) said in an interview broadcast on Friday, citing a US assessment. CSBC is testing the nation’s first indigenous defense submarine, the Hai Kun (海鯤, Narwhal), which is scheduled to be delivered to the navy next month or in July. The Hai Kun has completed torpedo-firing tests and is scheduled to undergo overnight sea trials, Chen said on an SET TV military affairs program. Taiwan would require at least 12 submarines to establish a modern submarine force after assessing the nation’s operational environment and defense
A white king snake that frightened passengers and caused a stir on a Taipei MRT train on Friday evening has been claimed by its owner, who would be fined, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC) said yesterday. A person on Threads posted that he thought he was lucky to find an empty row of seats on Friday after boarding a train on the Bannan (Blue) Line, only to spot a white snake with black stripes after sitting down. Startled, he jumped up, he wrote, describing the encounter as “terrifying.” “Taipei’s rat control plan: Release snakes on the metro,” one person wrote in reply, referring
The coast guard today said that it had disrupted "illegal" operations by a Chinese research ship in waters close to the nation and driven it away, part of what Taipei sees a provocative pattern of China's stepped up maritime activities. The coast guard said that it on Thursday last week detected the Chinese ship Tongji (同濟號), which was commissioned only last year, 29 nautical miles (54km) southeast of the southern tip of Taiwan, although just outside restricted waters. The ship was observed lowering ropes into the water, suspected to be the deployment of scientific instruments for "illegal" survey operations, and the coast
An inauguration ceremony was held yesterday for the Danjiang Bridge, the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge, ahead of its official opening to traffic on Tuesday, marking a major milestone after nearly three decades of planning and construction. At the ceremony in New Taipei City attended by President William Lai (賴清德), Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰), Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜), the bridge was hailed as both an engineering landmark and a long-awaited regional transport link connecting Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里)
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