ECCT Wind Power Festival
On 3 November, the ECCT's Low Carbon Initiative hosted a Wind Power Festival, with the support of the Taichung City Government and Turtle Shell Village in Taichung's Turtle Shell Park to showcase the potential of renewable energy and smart technologies. The event was attended by around 160 people including local officials from the Taichung city government, city councilors, 12 local chiefs and residents. Opening remarks were made by Legislative Yuan Vice President Tsai Chi-chang, PWC president Daniel Chu, Tsai Jeng-jeng, Secretary-General of Taichung city's Economic Development Department and ECCT CEO Freddie Hoglund.
At the event booths were set up by Enercon (to demonstrate the potential of wind energy), ABB (to demonstrate robots), PwC, Mobiletron (automotive electronics) and RAC Electric Vehicles (electric buses). Representatives from local industry were also present including Taiwan Power Company and Giant, a leading global manufacturer of bicycles.
The park is home to 39 wind turbines, which were used for all the power requirements, making it a zero-emission event. Guests were transported from Taichung High Speed Rail station to the park by five smart e-buses, the first of their kind certified by the Ministry of Transportation and Communication (MoTC). The buses and robots were recharged on site directly from wind energy. The event also featured a barbeque powered exclusively by wind energy.
The demonstration of the potential of renewable energy in action comes at an important time in Taiwan following the passage of the Greenhouse Reduction and Management Act in July 2015, setting a long-term goal of reducing Taiwan's carbon emissions to less than half the level of 2005 by 2050. In addition, in May 2016, Taiwan's new government has committed to increase renewable-based electricity generation to 20% of supply by 2025.
