US Representative Pat Harrigan yesterday introduced the Taiwan Energy Security and Anti-Embargo Act of 2026, saying it would ensure “Taiwan isn’t left vulnerable to supply shocks, coercion by the Chinese Communist Party [CCP], or external geopolitical turmoil.”
“Energy is leverage,” Harrigan, a Republican, was quoted as saying in a statement from his office. “Beijing knows exactly where Taiwan is weakest — and global events today, from strikes in the Middle East to threats at chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz, underscore that energy vulnerability is national security vulnerability.”
The bill would authorize the creation of a joint Taiwan-US energy security center to facilitate academic collaboration on energy security and mandate that the National Academy of Sciences report to the US Congress on ways to increase liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Taiwan.
Photo: CNA
It would also authorize the US departments of commerce, defense, energy and state to promote US energy exports to Taiwan, and help Taiwan diversify and protect its energy infrastructure and supply.
The bill would “harden a critical weak point in the Indo-Pacific balance of power: Taiwan’s energy dependence,” the statement said.
Prioritizing US LNG exports to Taiwan would reduce hostile powers’ leverage over Taiwan’s energy supply, it said.
Enhancing Taiwan-US cooperation on energy security would also help protect Taiwan’s energy grids and storage systems from different forms of attack, it added.
The bill further calls for bilateral efforts to develop advanced nuclear technologies, such as small modular reactors, to provide “reliable baseload power less susceptible to external disruptions,” the statement said.
The bill would expand the US Maritime Administration’s authority to ensure that vessels “transporting critical energy and vital goods to Taiwan” remain available if commercial operators withdraw from the market due to foreign military threats.
It would have to pass the US House of Representatives and the US Senate, and be signed into law by the US president.
Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) on Monday said that LNG supplies for this month and next month would require the equivalent of 22 shipments.
The ministry has secured 20 ships willing to make the trips and is searching for two more, Kung said, adding that LNG supplies for the two months are guaranteed.
Rumors that LNG supplies might be inadequate are “impossible,” Kung said, adding that Taiwan sources LNG from diverse suppliers, with about one-third coming from Qatar, while the remaining 60 to 70 percent comes from other countries.
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
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