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Map of TaiwanYearly electricity production by sourceEnergy consumption by source, Taiwan
In 2022, 79.6% of Taiwan's electricity generation came from fossil fuels (43.4% natural gas, 34.8% coal, 1.4% oil, 1.4% cogeneration, 1.2%), 9.1% from nuclear, 8.6% from renewables, and 1.2% from hydro.[1]Taiwan relies on imports for almost 98% of its energy,[2][3] which leaves the island's energy supply vulnerable to external disruption. In order to reduce this dependence, the Ministry of Economic Affairs' Bureau of Energy has been actively promoting energy research at several universities since the 1990s.
Nuclear energy is controversial, and the privatization of the energy market (with Taipower that is owned by the state), originally planned in 2001, was postponed to 2006. In 2012, nuclear power accounted for a total 38,890 GWh of electricity generation in Taiwan.[4] In 2015, nuclear energy provided one quarter of base load power generation and 16% of overall generation in Taiwan.[5]
The 2016 election was won by the Pan-Green Coalition which supported policies that included moving toward a nuclear-free society.[6][7] In the 2018 referendums voters repealed a portion of the Electricity Act which required the phase-out of nuclear power by 2025.[8] However, since then, older nuclear power plants have continued to be decommissioned with no new plants planned.
Liquefied natural gas
The annual output of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from exploration and production within Taiwan is 350-400 million m3. While on the other hand, Taiwan imported 18.4 billion m3 of LNG, the fifth largest LNG importer in the world, primarily from Qatar, Malaysia and Indonesia.[9] LNG-fired power plants in Taiwan produce electricity at a cost of NT$3.91/kWh, more than the electricity cost charged to the customers.[10]
The Democratic Progressive Party Government of the Republic of China under Chen Shui-bian was elected in early 2000 promising to approve only liquefied natural gas power projects in the future, and to increase the share of liquefied natural gas of Taiwan's power generation to roughly one-third by 2010. President Chen's administration tried to stop the 2,600 MW Longmen Nuclear Power Plant, currently under construction, but a court has ruled the construction could not be aborted.
In January 2013, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and Shinfox signed an agreement to supply Kinmen with liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Mainland China. The delivery of LNG is expected to be started in early 2015 to industrial companies. At a later stage, the supply will be increased up to 100,000 tonnes per year to include power plants and households. The agreement was witnessed by Minister of Environmental Protection AdministrationStephen Shen. Shen said that the cooperation is helpful to help Taiwan in realizing Kinmen to be a tourism-focused low-carbon county.[11] During the third Cross-Strait Entrepreneurs Summit in Nanjing on 2–3 November 2015, executives from CNOOC and Shinfox gave a briefing on the joint venture project. Under the cooperation framework, CNOOC facilities in Fujian will also supply compressed natural gas, along with production technology.[12]
As of 2017, the safety stock of LNG imported to Taiwan is seven days.[13] In 2017 Taiwan was the world's fifth largest importer of LNG accounting for 6% of global market share.[14]
In June 2009, the Legislative Yuan passed a renewable energy act aimed at promoting the use of renewable energy, boosting energy diversification and helping reduce greenhouse gases. The new law authorizes the government to enhance incentives for the development of renewable energy via a variety of methods, including the acquisition mechanism, incentives for demonstration projects, and the loosening of regulatory restrictions in order to increase Taiwan's renewable energy generation capacity by 6.5 gigawatts to 10 gigawatts within 20 years.[15][16]
In July 2009, the Executive Yuan approved a proposal consisting of 16 measures to transform Taiwan into a “low carbon” country by 2020. The Ministry of Economic Affairs’ (MOEA) proposal set a long-term goal of cutting total annual greenhouse gas emissions to 2000 levels by the year 2025. The Executive Yuan also requested the legislature to complete a bill on reducing carbon emissions and another bill on developing renewable energy. NT$226 million will be used to promote renewable energy and facilities in homes and public buildings. Over the next five years NT$20 billion would be invested into advanced technologies in seven industries: solar energy, LED lighting, wind power, hydrogen energy and fuel cells, biofuel, energy information and communications technology and electric vehicles. Cooperation between local governments and the central government will be enhanced by providing incentives for conserving energy and cutting emissions. Two pilot communities will be created per county or city over 2009-2011, with 50 percent of the energy supply in those areas coming from renewable sources.[17]
In August 2009, Taiwan's government has announced that it will invest T$45 billion ($1.4 billion) in the island's domestic renewable energy sector in an attempt to help the sector grow nearly eight-fold by 2015 thereby increasing industry production value to T$1.158 trillion in 2015 compared to T$160.3 billion in mid-2009. Proponents hope that "the green energy sector will help Taiwan become a major power in energy technology and production, as well as provide the creation of green jobs."[18]
In May 2016 Economics Minister Lee Shih-guang stated that the government expects renewable energy to account for 20% of electricity generation by 2025, to support the government's ambition to phase out nuclear power generation.[19]
Total carbon dioxide emissions nationwide were 277.645 million tonnes in 2006, representing 124.68 percent growth over 1990's 123.574 million tonnes, according to the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA). Energy conversion industry contributed to 6.9 percent of emissions in 2006, while heavy industry contributed 52.5 percent, the transportation sector contributed 14.3 percent, the commercial sector 6.3 percent and private households 12.1 percent.
Taiwan ranked third in Asia and 32nd worldwide in the 2009 Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) for carbon dioxide emissions, published by Climate Action Network Europe (CAN-Europe) and Germanwatch.[20]
Historical energy consumption
LPG tanker off of Pingtung coast
Taiwan produces electricity from fossil fuels, wind, nuclear and hydro power. Taiwan's energy consumption the equivalent of 10.5 million kiloliters of oil, or about 2.2 million barrels a day.
Consumption of petroleum products account for about half of Taiwan's energy supply equivalent of 4.5 million kiloliters of oil. Demand for diesel declined 21 percent, while that for gasoline dropped 8.7 percent. Monthly Power consumption is around 20.9 billion kilowatt-hours. Formosa Petrochemical Corp. and CPC Corp are Taiwan's only oil refiners.
Energy use in the first six months of the year rose 6.7 percent to the equivalent of 61.6 million kiloliters of oil, the energy bureau said.
Crude oil processing: 4.59 million kiloliters in June.
Coal imports: 5.23 million metric tons
Imports of crude oil: 26.9 million kiloliters
[LNG] purchases: 5.58 billion cubic meters. Purchases of liquefied natural gas increased 13 percent to 1.06 billion cubic meters. LNG accounted for 97 percent of gas supply.
In 2013, coal imports to Taiwan amounted 65.96 million tons, which consists of 58.96 million tons of steam coal and 7.02 million tons of coking coal. The largest coal exporter country to Taiwan is Indonesia (41.64%) and Australia (40.20%).[21]
In 2018, oil accounted for 48.28% of the total energy consumption. Coal comes next with 29.38%, followed by natural gas (indigenous and liquefied) with 15.18%, nuclear energy with 5.38%, biomass and waste with 1.13%, and energy from other renewable sources (plus hydroelectric power) with 0.64%.[22]
In 2020, 45% of Taiwan's electricity generation came from coal, 35.7% from natural gas, 11.2% from nuclear, and 5.4% from renewables.[23]
Energy efficiency
Efficient-Usage of Electricity Logo by Taipower
The Taiwan government has been active in promoting energy efficiency, and set a target of energy efficiency of 33% by 2025. This target is higher than Japan's commitment to APEC with the target of 25%-26% efficiency. The government is currently assisting 200 major energy users (companies and organizations) in implementing energy-saving measures.
Taiwan is preparing for the age of high oil prices, and is proactively developing clean energy, such as solar and wind power and biofuels. The efforts would help reduce Taiwan's reliance on imported oil, while contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gases.
The government aims for renewable energy to account for 15% of the nation's energy by 2025. It would amount to 8.45 million kilowatts, capable of producing 28.7 billion kilowatt hours of electricity. Wind-generated power could create as much as 8.9 billion kilowatt hours of electricity by 2025, comparable to 2.3 times the capacity of Linkou's thermal power plants. Many domestic companies are now beginning to work on the development of solar energy, and conservative estimates are projecting that 1.2 billion kilowatt hours of electricity will be produced through solar power by 2025.
Under the Energy Management Law and the underlying Implementing Regulations and related measures, companies are encouraged to improve the energy efficiency of their operations and products. Mandatory programs have been established for the purpose of energy conservation, including energy audit and energy efficiency standards for certain electrical and electronic products.
The Energy Commission under the Ministry of Economic Affairs is responsible for formulating and implementing energy policy and laws, including the programs instituted under the Energy Management Law. The principal responsibilities of the Energy Commission include:
supervising general affairs related to energy management to assure the stability of energy supply;
accelerating the rationalization of energy pricing;
promoting the effectiveness of energy utilization;
preventing energy-related environmental pollution; and
enhancing energy research and development.
The day-to-day work of the Energy Commission involves activities such as the development of policies and regulations, planning and conservation, research and development of technology, and data collection, processing, and publication.
Through the Greenmark program set up by the Fundamentals for Promoting the Use of the Taiwan Ecolabel, a number of energy-using appliances have been granted Ecolabels. For the electronic products, energy efficiency is one of the most important criteria for granting Green Marks. For further details, refer to the section on packaging and labeling. The Statute for Upgrading Industries also provides incentives for the improvement of energy efficiency.
Energy research
The Center for Energy Research (CER) at National Central University has initiated a plan to educate energy professionals. It would coordinate professors from related disciplines and build a diversified teaching platform to recruit young students and researchers. Educating young scientists in the field of green technology and encouraging them to create innovative products will provide Taiwan with an edge in the international market.
Japan is a major consumer of energy, ranking fifth in the world by primary energy use. Fossil fuels accounted for 88% of Japan's primary energy in 2019. Japan imports most of its energy due to scarce domestic resources. As of 2022, the country imports 97% of its oil and is the larger LNG importer globally.
Energy in the United Kingdom came mostly from fossil fuels in 2021. Total energy consumption in the United Kingdom was 142.0milliontonnes of oil equivalent in 2019. In 2014, the UK had an energy consumption per capita of 2.78tonnes of oil equivalent compared to a world average of 1.92tonnes of oil equivalent. Demand for electricity in 2023 was 29.6GW on average, supplied through 235TWh of UK-based generation and 24TWh of energy imports.
The energy policy of India is to increase the locally produced energy in India and reduce energy poverty, with more focus on developing alternative sources of energy, particularly nuclear, solar and wind energy. Net energy import dependency was 40.9% in 2021-22. The primary energy consumption in India grew by 13.3% in FY2022-23 and is the third biggest with 6% global share after China and USA. The total primary energy consumption from coal, crude oil, natural gas, nuclear energy, hydroelectricity and renewable power is 809.2 Mtoe in the calendar year 2018. In 2018, India's net imports are nearly 205.3 million tons of crude oil and its products, 26.3 Mtoe of LNG and 141.7 Mtoe coal totaling to 373.3 Mtoe of primary energy which is equal to 46.13% of total primary energy consumption. India is largely dependent on fossil fuel imports to meet its energy demands – by 2030, India's dependence on energy imports is expected to exceed 53% of the country's total energy consumption.
The energy policy of Australia is subject to the regulatory and fiscal influence of all three levels of government in Australia, although only the State and Federal levels determine policy for primary industries such as coal. Federal policies for energy in Australia continue to support the coal mining and natural gas industries through subsidies for fossil fuel use and production. Australia is the 10th most coal-dependent country in the world. Coal and natural gas, along with oil-based products, are currently the primary sources of Australian energy usage and the coal industry produces over 30% of Australia's total greenhouse gas emissions. In 2018 Australia was the 8th highest emitter of greenhouse gases per capita in the world.
China is both the world's largest energy consumer and the largest industrial country, and ensuring adequate energy supply to sustain economic growth has been a core concern of the Chinese Government since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. Since the country's industrialization in the 1960s, China is currently the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, and coal in China is a major cause of global warming. However, from 2010 to 2015 China reduced energy consumption per unit of GDP by 18%, and CO2 emissions per unit of GDP by 20%. On a per-capita basis, China was only the world's 51st largest emitter of greenhouse gases in 2016. China is also the world's largest renewable energy producer, and the largest producer of hydroelectricity, solar power and wind power in the world. The energy policy of China is connected to its industrial policy, where the goals of China's industrial production dictate its energy demand managements.
Since 2013, total primary energy consumption in India has been the third highest in the world after China and United States. India is the second-top coal consumer in the year 2017 after China. India ranks third in oil consumption with 22.1 crore tons in 2017 after United States and China. India is net energy importer to meet nearly 47% of its total primary energy in 2019.
Energy in Romania describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Romania.
Energy in Germany is obtained for the vast majority from fossil sources, accounting for 77.6% of total energy consumption in 2023, followed by renewables at 19.6%, and 0.7% nuclear power. As of 2023, German primary energy consumption amounted to 10,791 Petajoule, making it the ninth largest global primary energy consumer. The total consumption has been steadily declining from its peak of 14,845 Petajoule in 2006. In 2023 Germany's gross electricity production reached 508.1 TWh, down from 569.2 TWh in 2022, and 631.4 TWh in 2013.
Energy in Finland describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Finland. Energy policy of Finland describes the politics of Finland related to energy. Electricity sector in Finland is the main article regarding electricity in Finland.
South Korea is a major energy importer, importing nearly all of its oil needs and ranking as the second-largest importer of liquefied natural gas in the world. Electricity generation in the country mainly comes from conventional thermal power, which accounts for more than two thirds of production, and from nuclear power.
China is the world's largest electricity producer, having overtaken the United States in 2011 after rapid growth since the early 1990s. In 2021, China produced 8.5 petawatt-hour (PWh) of electricity, approximately 30% of the world's electricity production.
Energy security of the People's Republic of China concerns the need for the People's Republic of China to guarantee itself and its industries long- term access to sufficient energy and raw materials. China has been endeavoring to sign international agreements and secure such supplies; its energy security involves the internal and foreign energy policy of China. Currently, China's energy portfolio consists mainly of domestic coal, oil and gas from domestic and foreign sources, and small quantities of uranium. China has also created a strategic petroleum reserve, to secure emergency supplies of oil for temporary price and supply disruptions. Chinese policy focuses on diversification to reduce oil imports, which used to rely almost exclusively on producers in the Middle East.
The utility electricity sector in Bangladesh has one national grid operated by Power Grid Company of Bangladesh with an installed capacity of 25,700 MW as of June 2022. Bangladesh's energy sector is not up to the mark. However, per capita energy consumption in Bangladesh is considered higher than the production. Electricity was introduced to the country on 7 December 1901.
Energy in Australia is the production in Australia of energy and electricity, for consumption or export. Energy policy of Australia describes the politics of Australia as it relates to energy.
Energy in Austria describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Austria. Austria is very reliant on hydro as an energy source, supported by imported oil and natural gas supplies. It is planned by 2030 to become 100% electricity supplied by renewable sources, primarily hydro, wind and solar.
Energy in Singapore is critically influenced by its strategic position in maritime Southeast Asia, nestled between Malaysia and the Singapore Strait, near essential maritime routes like the Straits of Malacca and the South China Sea. This location has established Singapore as a central hub for the global petroleum, petrochemical, and chemical industries, with Jurong Island serving as a key base for over 100 international companies in these sectors. The majority of Singapore's energy consumption is derived from petroleum and other liquids, accounting for 86% of its total energy use, while natural gas represents 13%, and coal and renewable resources make up the remaining 1%.
Energy in Portugal describes energy and electricity production, consumption and import in Portugal. Energy policy of Portugal will describe the politics of Portugal related to energy more in detail. Electricity sector in Portugal is the main article of electricity in Portugal.
Stephen Shen is a Taiwanese politician. He was the Minister of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) of the Executive Yuan from 2008 to 2014.
Energy in Tanzania is fundamental to the nation's projected economic growth, with estimates indicating that the economy could expand sevenfold by 2040, while energy demand is expected to increase by only 150% due to advancements in fuel efficiency. The country is actively enhancing its energy mix, primarily relying on natural gas for more than half of its electricity generation and significant contributions from hydropower, with oil primarily used for backup power. Tanzania has a wide range of energy resources in abundance, which are not yet fully exploited. These include; wood fuel, other biomass fuels, hydropower, natural gas, coal, wind, geothermal, uranium and solar.
Natural gas was the United States' largest source of energy production in 2016, representing 33 percent of all energy produced in the country. Natural gas has been the largest source of electrical generation in the United States since July 2015.
Tsai, W.-T. (2005). "Current status and development policies on renewable energy technology research in Taiwan". Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 9 (3): 237–253. Bibcode:2005RSERv...9..237T. doi:10.1016/j.rser.2004.03.003.
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