The head of a nuclear power plant was among three people indicted yesterday on charges of corruption at power facilities, while a businessman surnamed Tsao (曹), who allegedly paid bribes, was granted deferred prosecution, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said.
Tseng Wen-huang (曾文煌), who in January last year took over as head of the Guosheng Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Wanli District (萬里), was in charge of two projects at the facility that authorities scrutinized, with the contracts awaiting approval to be awarded to Tsao, the office said.
The power plant was shut down in 2023 after reaching the end of its 40-year service life, although non-power-generation work at the site continues.
Photo: Taipei Times
On Feb. 1 last year, Tseng met with Tsao and allegedly solicited NT$2 million (US$66,664) to finalize a contract to replace an incinerator control system, which Tsao agreed to, prosecutors said.
When the two met again on June 13, Tsao asked Tseng to lower the demand for NT$2 million to NT$1.6 million, prosecutors said, adding that Tseng agreed to the new amount.
In August last year, Tsao met with Tseng to hand over the money, which Tseng put in a safe above a ceiling in his home in Keelung, prosecutors said.
In June last year, Tsao won a tender to install a supervisory control and data acquisition system, with Tseng seeking NT$200,000 to sign the deal, the prosecutors’ office said, adding that the money for the second project was paid in January upon completion.
Tsao was not the only person to bribe Tseng, the office said.
Tsao asked a businessman surnamed Hao (郝) to bid on a NT$7 million tender for automated sandblasters at the plant, and Hao agreed, understanding that Tseng expected to receive bribes, it said.
Hao visited Tseng at his office at the power plant twice, in March and April, giving him NT$200,000 each time, it said.
Hao is also acquainted with Chu Yun-chung (朱允中), director of the coal-fired Linkou Power Plant in New Taipei City, who was also indicted on corruption charges yesterday, it said.
Chu helped Hao win a tender at the Linkou plant in 2019 and was given NT$500,000 in return, prosecutors said, adding that Chu received another NT$300,000 from Hao for a separate project at the Linkou facility in 2020.
Tsao admitted guilt to the charges he faced and expressed deep remorse, providing a full account of his actions, prosecutors said, adding that he was granted deferred prosecution for two years and ordered to pay NT$1.5 million into the national treasury.
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