RE100 chief calls on Taiwan to end fossil fuel subsidies

Taipei, July 4 (CNA) The leader of the RE100 party on Thursday called on the Taiwanese government to eliminate subsidies for fossil fuels in a bid to further support the development of the renewable energy market.

Speaking at a renewable energy procurement forum in Taipei, Sam Kimmins, chief energy officer at Climate Group, the international nonprofit that co-founded RE100, also welcomed Hon Hai Technology Group (Foxconn) to the RE100 family, which has committed to sourcing 100 percent renewable electricity across its global operations by 2040.

Foxconn officially became a member of RE100 on Thursday, according to the manufacturing giant.

RE100 is a global corporate renewable energy initiative calling on companies to commit to 100% renewable energy. It currently has 34 member companies based in Taiwan, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and Hon Hai.

The 34 members account for just over 10 percent of Taiwan’s electricity needs, Kimmins said.

According to the U.S. Energy Administration, in 2023, the country’s total electricity consumption was about 277 terawatt-hours.

Kimmins noted that about 98 percent of Taiwan’s energy is imported, which means not only huge costs but also energy security risks, and “the best thing about renewables is that they are produced here in Taiwan.”

As an export-oriented economy, Taiwan is heavily dependent on exports, and its customers such as Google, Amazon and Apple increasingly expect products to be manufactured using 100% renewable or emission-free electricity, the RE100 executive said.

Even though demand is high, there are barriers that limit mass access to renewable energy for any company in Taiwan, and one of the main obstacles is the relatively high price of electricity from renewable sources.

Kimmins said one reason the price remains high may be that the tipping point for a decline has not yet been reached.

“The Global Wind Energy Council has developed a model that predicts that once the market reaches about three to four gigawatts of installed offshore wind capacity, there will not only be a steady decline in prices, but also a precipitous decline,” he explained.

Taiwan’s offshore wind market has not yet reached scale, but is on track to reach three gigawatts by the end of this year and 5.6 gigawatts by 2025, he said. “So you’re about to reach the tipping point that GWEC predicted.”

Another factor that keeps renewable energy prices relatively high is the fact that fossil fuel subsidies keep the price of electricity from non-renewable sources “artificially low,” the executive said.

He added that removing subsidies for fossil fuels would create a level playing field for renewable energy.