Completion and Grid Connection of 900 MW Greater Changhua 1 & 2a Offshore Wind Farm in APAC

President Ing-Wen Tsai attended ceremony held by Ørsted at Taichung Port today.

Ørsted announced today (25) that the 900 MW Greater Changhua 1 & 2a Offshore Wind Farm has been completed and fully connected to the Taipower grid, becoming the largest operational offshore wind farm in the Asia-Pacific region. This milestone doubles Taiwan's offshore wind power installation capacity and stimulates the local offshore wind power industry ecosystem.

Today, Ørsted held a ceremony to celebrate the opening of its "Taiwan Offshore Wind Farms Operations and Maintenance Hub" in Taichung Port. The event was attended by President Ing-Wen Tsai, along with several dignitaries including Jong-Chin Shen, the Senior Advisor to the President; Xavier Chang, Deputy Secretary-General to the President; Mei-Hua Wang, Minister of Economic Affairs; investors in Greater Changhua 1 - Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ); Cathay Sustainable Private Equity Fund representatives; local suppliers and bank partners; as well as Mads Nipper, Ørsted Global CEO; Patrick Harnett, Ørsted Chief Operating Officer & Executive Vice President; Per Mejnert Kristensen, Ørsted Asia-Pacific President, and Christy Wang, Ørsted Taiwan Chairperson.

(Left to right) Taiwan President, Ing-Wen Tsai｜Mads Nipper, Ørsted Global CEO

During the speech, President Ing-Wen Tsai highlighted the challenges involved in pursuing sustainable development while transitioning to clean energy and expressed her gratitude towards Ørsted, as well as other local and international developers, public enterprises, academic institutions, local suppliers, and banks, for their contributions towards this goal over the past eight years. The President also acknowledged the efforts of the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA), Energy Administration, and Industrial Development Administration (IDA) in this regard.

The Greater Changhua 1 & 2a (900 MW) project also includes Greater Changhua 2b (337.1 MW), Greater Changhua 4 (582.9 MW), and Greater Changhua 3 (570 MW, obtained EIA approval), with a total installation capacity of 2.4 GW across all sites. Once Greater Changhua 1 & 2a are fully operational, the annual production of clean energy will be equivalent to reducing 1.75 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year, comparable to the carbon reduction of 13,500 Taipei Daan Forest Parks.

Mads Nipper stated, "The completion and grid connection of Greater Changhua 1 & 2a are significant achievements for Ørsted and Taiwan. This is our first GW-scale offshore wind farm outside Europe and currently the largest offshore wind farm in the Asia-Pacific region, further consolidating Taiwan's leading position in Asia-Pacific offshore wind power."

Per Mejnert Kristensen added, "Greater Changhua 1 & 2a is a landmark offshore wind project with historical significance, initiating the development of Taiwan's local offshore wind industry chain. Ørsted has cultivated a strong local talent pool for the offshore wind power industry, ensuring stable output of clean electricity for decades to come."

Ørsted initiated the construction of Greater Changhua 1 & 2a in March 2021 and announced in early April the completion of the installation of 111 SGRE (Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy) SG 8.0-167DD turbines, all fully connected to the grid for power generation. This project consists of Greater Changhua 1 with 605.2 MW and Greater Changhua 2a with 294.8 MW. Ørsted Energy owns 50% of Greater Changhua 1, with the remaining 50% equity held by a joint venture company composed of CDPQ, and Taiwan Cathay Sustainable Private Equity Fund. Greater Changhua 2a is fully owned by Ørsted Energy.

Ørsted is the biggest investor in Taiwan's first offshore wind farm, "Formosa 1" (128 MW), and is currently constructing Greater Changhua 2b (920 MW) and Greater Changhua 4 (582.9 MW), totaling approximately 2 GW of offshore wind power capacity under operation and construction in Taiwan.

Photo source of the report:EnergyOMNI｜Ørsted