ITRI 2023 Net Zero Day in Taipei, Taiwan (source: ITRI)Zheng Wencan, Vice President of the Executive Yuan of Taiwan, has described the steps that the Taiwanese government is taking to lower the financial and administrative thresholds of geothermal development. The statement was made during the “NET ZERO DAY – Building Net Zero Era Competitiveness” event organized by the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) in Taipei, Taiwan.
The Energy Bureau of the Ministry of Economic Affairs has proposed a draft amendment to the “Renewable Energy Development Regulations” that adds a special chapter on geothermal. This chapter is expected to address many of the procedural issues encountered by operators when applying for geothermal power generation. The proposal is currently being reviewed by the Legislative Yuan.
The draft clarifies the relevant application and review procedures for the stages of geothermal exploration, development, and operation. This aims to simplify procedures and also remove legal restriction that hamper geothermal development, including the very short period of water rights associated to digging wells for hot springs.
Another noteworthy amendment is the removal of the requirement for the approval of construction plans in the geothermal exploration stage. In the past, this required changes in land use between the central and local governments. A financial incentive for geothermal exploration had previously been announced in Taiwan, providing a maximum incentive of NTD 100 million (approx. USD 3.3 million) or 50% of the exploration cost.
In his statement, the Vice Premiere said that Taiwan has about 40 GW of geothermal potential with less than 5 kW developed. He mentioned that the core concept of this forum is that net zero is not only an environmental issue, but also an economic issue. In the global supply chain, Taiwan must comply with the net-zero standard in order to be able to keep in line with the world and other countries in the future.
