Ørsted has inaugurated the Greater Changhua 1 and 2a offshore wind farms in Taiwan, with a total installed capacity of 900 MW.
The two offshore wind farms are in operation and fully connected to the grid, making them the largest of their kind in Taiwan and in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Greater Changhua 1 and 2a offshore wind farms have not only doubled Taiwan’s offshore wind capacity, they have also successfully catalyzed Taiwan’s offshore wind ecosystem.
Ørsted began offshore construction in March 2021 and recently announced the successful installation of all 111 Siemens Gamesa SG 8.0-167 DD wind turbines, which are now supplying renewable energy to Taiwan’s electricity grid.
The 605.2 MW offshore wind farm Greater Changhua 1 is co-owned by Ørsted (50%) and Mercury Taiwan Holdings, a consortium of CDPQ, a global investment group, and Cathay PE, with a combined ownership stake of 50%. The 294.8 MW Greater Changhua 2a is fully owned by Ørsted.
The 900 MW wind farms are part of Ørsted’s Greater Changhua offshore wind zone, which also comprises Greater Changhua 2b, Greater Changhua 3, and Greater Changhua 4. The zone has a combined capacity of approximately 2.4 GW.
Greater Changhua 1 and 2a alone can produce enough renewable energy to power one million Taiwanese households a year, equivalent to 1.75 million tonnes of carbon dioxide reductions annually.
The company is currently constructing its next large-scale project, the 920 MW Greater Changhua 2b and 4 offshore wind farms. Together with Taiwan’s first commercial offshore wind farm, Formosa 1 (128 MW), Ørsted is operating and constructing nearly 2 GW of offshore wind capacity in Taiwan.
“Greater Changhua 1 and 2a are our first gigawatt-scale offshore wind farms outside of Europe. They’re also Taiwan’s first utility-scale far-shore wind farms and the largest of their kind in APAC, reaffirming Taiwan as the frontrunner in the region,” said Mads Nipper, Group President and CEO of Ørsted.
“Greater Changhua 1 and 2a is a flagship project of historic significance. This project has spearheaded the establishment of the local offshore wind industry as well as contributed significantly to Taiwan’s energy transition and net-zero goals.
“We’ve built a strong talent pool, including our industry-first operations and maintenance ‘Taiwan team’, dedicated to ensuring a stable energy output for decades to come. Together, we look forward to delivering more world-class wind farms in Taiwan,” added Per Mejnert Kristensen, CEO of Region APAC at Ørsted.