Mitsui, Northland to invest in Taiwan offshore wind farm
Mitsui & Co and Northland Power Inc (北陸能源) are to invest in a ¥960 billion (US$6.5 billion) offshore wind project off Taiwan’s east coast that would generate enough electricity for 1 million households.
Seventy-three large turbines would be installed in the offshore area about 45 to 70km off of Changhua County, with power being produced from the end of 2025 and the project being completed a year later, the Japanese company said in a statement released yesterday. Mitsui would have a 40 percent shareholding in the development, which would have a 1,022 megawatt capacity.
The rest of the Hai Long Offshore Wind Power Project (海龍離岸風電計畫) would be owned by Northland, a Canadian company, Mitsui said.
Agreements have been signed to sell the green electricity to Taiwan Power Co (台電) under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) and to a private power user in Taiwan under a 30-year PPA.
The investment decision comes as soaring costs derail offshore wind projects around the globe, even as demand for renewable power has jumped. Mitsui, one of the largest Japanese trading houses, is trying to move away from fossil fuels, while Taiwan is targeting 5.6 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by 2025, up from just 237 megawatt in 2021.
Mitsui plans to invest ¥260 billion in the project, while ¥540 billion would be raised via financing, it said. The company’s shares fell 1.9 percent as of 2:21pm in Tokyo yesterday, outpacing a 0.5 percent drop in the Nikkei index.
Separately, the Hai Long Offshore Wind Project announced yesterday that it has signed credit agreements for NT$118 billion (US$3.67 million) in longterm financing. Once financing is completed, it would be the largest offshore wind project financing to date in Taiwan and the Asia-Pacific region, according to a statement posted on its Web site. This not only signifies a big milestone for the project, but also demonstrates a new page for the nation’s green finance.
The project is expected to be connected to the power generation grid between 2025 and 2026, the statement said. Creating more than 5,000 jobs throughout its lifetime, the Hai Long Project would become the largest single wind farm in Taiwan and supply electricity to more than 1 million households, it said.