At the Cabinet's weekly meeting Thursday, Premier Su Tseng-chang said that the government is on track to ensure a stable power supply by building up the nation's smart power grid.
With countries worldwide pursuing renewable energy, Taiwan is also eyeing the development of renewable sources to achieve energy transformation. Solar and wind power, however, are highly subject to seasonal factors, which can affect reliability. As traditional transmission networks are not equipped to make the best use of renewable energy and are thus unable to meet the nation's energy policy requirements, the installation and building out of a smart grid is vital, Premier Su said.
The premier's remarks followed a Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) briefing on the status and future development of Taiwan's smart power network.
A smart power grid can help ensure stable, quality power for citizens while also handling a significantly greater amount of electricity generated from renewable sources. Meanwhile, smart meters can assist users keep track of electricity consumption in real time and encourage energy-saving habits, the premier said.
In addition to improving grid stability and the quality of power supplied to users, the government is also promoting energy conservation through the rollout of smart meters. Taiwan has completed installation for all high-voltage accounts and 310,000 low-voltage users. Premier Su called for accelerated efforts to reach the objective of 1 million low-voltage smart meters installed by the end of 2020.
According to the MOEA, building a smart power grid is expected to stimulate related industries and increase their annual production value to NT$43 billion (US$1.41 billion) by 2025.