The ECCT arranged a lunch with guest speaker Michael Chen, Director-General of the Investigation Bureau under the Ministry of Justice (MJIB, 法務部調查局 陳白立局長). In his presentation, DG Chen briefed members and guests about the MJIB's ongoing activities, with a focus on tackling crimes hindering the development of green energy projects in Taiwan.

The MJIB is a law enforcement agency with primary missions to protect national security and investigate major crimes, including combating crimes that hinder industrial and business development.

A magazine article cited by Chen from April 2021 quoted a foreign investor warning fellow investors not to invest in green energy in Taiwan. Since then the MJIB has increased its attention and focus on the green energy sector. It formed a task force together with other government agencies and launched investigations in several cases. More recently, under the new administration of President Lai, Premier Cho Jung-tai convened a public security meeting for preventing and combating crimes that hinder the green energy industry and has embarked on a series of strategic actions, as outlined below.

Establishment of a transparent benefit-sharing mechanism: The lack of a standard mechanism to determine who should be compensated from loss of land, resources or revenue or to share benefits from green energy projects and how much they should receive has opened the way to corrupt players to seek personal benefits. It has also put companies in the difficult position of having to choose between paying bribes or losing business opportunities. Authorities are currently reviewing existing benefits with a view towards creating a standard mechanism that is fair and transparent.

Simplifying the application process: A simpler review process for green energy projects with standards and standard operating procedures would reduce the opportunities for corruption. This includes standardising procedures across Taiwan to remove inconsistencies among procedures of various local authorities. In addition, the MOEA has begun tracking large-scale solar projects with the aim of resolving difficulties in the process proactively, as a way to reduce the opportunities for corrupt players to demand kickbacks for help in overcoming obstacles.

Strengthening judicial-industry collaboration: The MJIB, together with the police and other government agencies, has been proactive in forging ties with industry. Its field agents paid 1,700 visits to green energy companies in 2024 alone. It has also arranged inter-agency symposiums and public education efforts.

Effective investigations to deter illegal activities: Since April 2021, 22 cases of public officials involved in green energy-related corruption have been investigated. Besides bringing the perpetrators to justice, this has helped to raise awareness of the issue and serve as a deterrent.

The speaker went on to highlight some of the cases. In one case, a section chief of the Cultural Heritage Division under the Ministry of Culture steered an applicant to hire a friend's company to conduct part of the review process to assess the risk to "underwater heritage". The section chief was found guilty of accepting bribes of NT$8.57 million and sentenced to three years and eight months in prison. This case indicates how even officials in the Ministry of Culture can have a corrupt influence in green energy projects.

In another case, a township chief in Yunlin County solicited bribes from a wind energy company in exchange for halting local protests against the project. In another case, a township representative of Dacheng Township in Changhua County claimed that a project was leading to the death of clams on his farm and demanded NT$2 million as compensation from the developer.

According to Chen, the MJIB has successfully executed 25 arrests and recovered money from bribes. He went on to introduce members of his team and urged members to report any suspicions of crimes to them for follow-up investigations.