Taiwan is working to promote renewable energy generation and improve energy efficiency to cope with climate change and meet growing demand for electricity, Minister of Economic Affairs John Deng (鄧振中) said yesterday at a conference on energy issues in Taipei.
Taiwan is designing sustainable power solutions for the next generation to address climate change, he said at the opening of the Conference on Next-Generation Power in Asia, at which local and foreign experts discussed solar energy, wind power and smart grids.
Developing renewable energy is important for Taiwan because the nation relies on fuel imports and electricity demand continues to grow, Deng said.
To promote renewable energy, Taiwan has increased its target for overall renewable energy capacity from more than 10,000 megawatts to 30,000 megawatts by 2030, alongside adding a goal of improving energy efficiency by 2 percent per year, he said.
Deng said that Asian nations must construct a more efficient smart grid amid rising power demand.
Organized by the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ Bureau of Energy and the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the two-day conference gathered experts and officials from such countries including Vietnam, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines to talk about next-generation power policies in Asia, the bureau said.
The bureau said it has been promoting solar energy and wind power projects, as well as smart grid programs aimed at improving energy efficiency.
US officials at the event include Robert Wang, US senior official for APEC, and AIT Director Christopher Marut.
The event marks a step forward in US-Taiwan cooperation in the region, Marut said.
The over-reliance on fossil fuel has had a negative impact in every region of the world, including air pollution in the Asia-Pacific, rising mercury levels in the oceans, damage to marine habitats and threats to global food security, Marut said in his opening remarks.
“All of the developments underscore the need for governments to plan and implement good energy policies and to adopt cleaner, more efficient and more affordable costs of producing energy,” Marut said.
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