Taiwan to Establish Regular Review Mechanism for Offshore Wind and Streamline Administrative Processes

To continuously improve the application procedures for offshore wind project, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) recently convened the Energy Administration and the Industrial Development Administration to discuss ways to expedite the administrative review process. The meeting proposed concrete measures including joint reviews, rolling reviews, regular scheduled reviews, and pre-reviews to help accelerate the approval timelines for wind farm projects. The Energy Administration of the MOEA provided the following explanations:

Integrated Review Process for Industry Relevance:
For potential sites, the Industrial Development Administration and the Energy Administration will consolidate the existing two-stage review process into a joint review mechanism. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and review meetings will be held biweekly to enhance review efficiency. For projects under the zonal development phase, the same principles, rolling reviews and biweekly review meetings, will be applied.

1. Shortened Review Timelines:
The previous timeline for the written review of industry relevance proposals (6 to 11 days) will be shortened to within 5 days.

2. The time for applicants to submit supplementary documents, originally taking 24 to 60 days, will be reduced to 5 to 7 days with pre-assistance from the Industrial Development Administration to clarify disputes.
The time needed to hold review meetings and issue official records, previously 21 to 28 days, will be shortened to within 14 days.
Overall, the industry relevance review process can be shortened by 27 to 73 days, with the goal of completing the entire review within 24 to 26 days.

3. Increased Transparency:
The Industrial Development Administration will clearly define the review procedures for industry relevance and compile relevant document checklists. This information will be made publicly available to assist developers and domestic supply chain stakeholders.

4. Review Mechanism for Power-Related Permits:
Regarding permits related to offshore wind power electricity procedures, the Energy Administration will continue using the pre-review mechanism for establishment permits, construction permits, and electricity licenses, with regular monthly review meetings.

The MOEA reiterates its commitment to continuously optimizing the administrative review procedures for offshore wind, and to clearly defining relevant review standards for industry compliance. Developers that submit complete documentation in a timely manner will benefit from significantly reduced review times, thereby accelerating wind farm development schedules and reducing the risk of contract breaches.