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Taiwan wants to increase its wind power capacity to 2150 MW by 2010, ten years ahead of its original goal. The wind power will supply 10% of the country's electricity. State utility Taipower aims to develop 500 MW of the planned capacity, while the private sector is expected to provide the rest.

Taipower announced the winners of its 100 MW first phase a year ago (“uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç, January 2003). News of the winner of the first of three projects in the 126 MW second phase -- a 46 MW wind farm in the Chunghwa industrial district -- is expected shortly. Calls for the second and third tenders -- 32 MW at Mailiao and 48 MW at Shihu and Kohu -- are due in mid 2005, with winners to be selected by August. All the projects are expected online by 2007.

Project developers are hoping the government will increase the purchase price in its 15 year wind power contracts from the current TWD 2.0/kWh ($0.06/kWh). Of developers active in the country, Japan's J-Power has approval for a project in Hsin-Fong and Germany's InfraVest is advancing 49.8 MW in Miaoli county for completion in September. The project is one of 300 MW InfraVest is planning in Taiwan over the next few years.

With Taipower urging the use of 2 MW turbines, Vestas is stepping up its operations in Taiwan. Its Taiwanese agent, Total Industrial, has formed a distributor joint venture with Japan's Toyota Trading Group. The 50:50 joint venture is called Vestech Taiwan Corp.