Environmental groups yesterday voiced qualified support for an increase in electricity rates, saying that a price hike could boost the energy efficiency of Taiwanese industries and help them achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
Electricity rates must reflect real energy costs, a coalition of 12 groups — including the Green Citizens’ Action Alliance, Citizens of the Earth, Taiwan, and the Taiwan Climate Action Network — said in a joint statement before the government announced rate hikes later in the day.
Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) earlier that day started the review process for a proposed 15 percent increase in industrial electricity prices and a 10 percent increase in residential electricity prices.
Photo: CNA
Taipower has incurred accumulated losses of NT$380 billion (US$11.89 billion) in the past two years, due largely to soaring gas and oil prices amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, they said.
The International Energy Agency in 2022 reported that the various forms of subsidies Taiwan provided related to fossil energy were worth five times more than the previous year.
A continued failure to adjust electricity prices in these circumstances would negatively affect Taiwan’s push to reach net zero emmissions, its fight against air pollution and the financial viability of Taipower, the groups added.
“Certain individuals have repeatedly made misleading statements that blame the anti-nuclear power movement and renewables for the [proposed] electricity rate hike,” they said. “These statements misguide the public and prevent constructive policy discussions.”
Claims from Taiwanese industries that increased electricity rates would cause them to relocate are exaggerated, as Taiwan boasted the world’s third-lowest industrial electricity prices in 2022, behind South Korea and China, they said.
Electric bills account for just 2.1 percent of the Taiwanese manufacturing sector’s total business expenditures, meaning the proposed hike would increase production costs by 0.9 percent, the groups added.
“We urge large enterprises to review and improve the energy efficiency of their operations instead of obsessing over electricity prices, which would contribute to Taiwan’s transformation to a net zero economy,” they said.
The government should be prepared to deal with the effects of higher residential electricity costs on low-income families and the price of necessities, and strengthen progressive electricity purchasing to counter inequality, the groups said.
Subsidies for energy-efficient household appliances, smart electricity meters and heat-regulating architecture should be utilized to change the public’s energy consumption patterns, they added.
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