Orsted Inks Taichung Lease for OWF
Orsted Taiwan Ltd announced that it has signed a 20-year wharf lease with Taiwan International Ports Corp (TIPC) for the development of its offshore wind farms (OWF) off Changhua County.
The global offshore wind leader announced the signing of a wharf lease and a 20-year operations and maintenance (O&M) lease with the Port of Taichung, managed by Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) and TIPC Marine Construction, respectively.
The Ørsted leased wharfs at the Port of Taichung will be upgraded and utilized for the construction of the Greater Changhua offshore wind farms, and the O&M site will serve as the O&M base for Ørsted‘s Changhua offshore wind farms from 2022 onwards.
Ørsted’s Greater Changhua wind farms are located approximately 35-60 kilometers off the coast of Changhua County. The Port of Taichung has been selected as the most suitable O&M base for these wind farms due to its proximity to the sites, water depth, wharf facilities and navigational access quality.
Ørsted will invest significantly in building the new and environmentally friendly O&M base to provide long-term operations and maintenance services for the wind farms.
In accordance with the construction timeline for Greater Changhua 1 & 2a, Ørsted has begun the upgrade of the leased wharfs to be ready to store components, such as pin piles, towers and blades. The wharf lease with the Port of Taichung will cover the period during which Ørsted plans to install at least 1.82GW offshore wind capacity in Taiwan.
Matthias Bausenwein, President of Ørsted Asia-Pacific, said: “The 20-year lease with the Port of Taichung shows our long-term commitment to fully developing and implementing in Changhua County. We want to ensure that we are well prepared for the continuing offshore wind development in Taiwan by upgrading the harbor infrastructure for construction and operations works. We also expect that during the O&M phase, our Greater Changhua wind farms will create several hundred local direct and indirect jobs with our contractors and suppliers. These efforts are a win-win situation for the development of the offshore wind industry and local communities.”
Andreas Munk-Janson, Head of Operations of Ørsted Asia-Pacific, said: “Ørsted pioneers offshore wind in Taiwan by investing in the construction of a brand-new building, serving as the O&M base for our offshore wind farms. Once we’ve completed the construction of this building, the onshore-based O&M staff and management team will be stationed there to support the offshore-based O&M teams for these wind farms. Drawing on Ørsted’s extensive experience in operating offshore wind farms, the building design has been optimized to drive operational efficiency.”
The construction of the O&M building will begin in 2020, with expected inauguration in 2022. Designed by the MAA Group’s local firm, this building will be a green building with a gold rating from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), making it the flagship O&M center for Ørsted Asia Pacific.
It will be constructed in accordance with similar European design principles and installed with green solutions, such as recycling of rainwater, maximal application of local green materials, solar panels and charging stations for electric cars and scooters. These efforts are in line with Ørsted’s decarbonization program and vision of creating a greener and more sustainable world.
Ørsted, recently ranked the most sustainable company in the world Corporate Knights Inc., will become carbon neutral in its energy generation by 2025. As part of its green commitment, Ørsted joins the global EV 100 initiative and targets to achieve a 100% electric vehicle fleet within five years through adoption of battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Additionally, Ørsted will work together with its suppliers to achieve the target of a carbon neutral footprint by 2040.
