A memorandum of understanding on developing local offshore wind power capabilities was concluded by state-owned Taiwan International Port Corporation Ltd. and the British Office in Taipei March 13 in Kaohsiung City.
 
Signed by TIPC Port of Taichung President Chung Ying-feng and BOT Rep. Catherine Nettleton on the sidelines of Asia-Pacific Wind Energy Expo in the southern Taiwan port metropolis, the pact paves the way for closer Taiwan-U.K. cooperation and exchanges in key fields like policy, strategy and technology.
 
Chung said the agreement is a blue-ribbon opportunity to learn from Great Britain’s extensive experience in offshore wind farms. This sharing of know-how stands to broaden TIPC’s green energy horizons and strengthen its organizational capabilities, he added.
 
Kaohsiung-headquartered TIPC is tasked with creating the requisite infrastructure and services at the Port of Taichung in central Taiwan for assembling key components of Taiwan’s first pilot offshore wind farm later this month.
 
Nettleton said the tie-up comes at an exciting time and it is hoped the collaboration will make a significant contribution to the development of local port infrastructure during the construction, operation and management phases of Taiwan’s offshore wind farms. The U.K. has the biggest offshore wind capacity in the world and looks forward to sharing related experiences with TIPC and other partners in Taiwan, she added.
 
The inaugural Asia-Pacific Wind Energy Expo is running March 13-15 at Kaohsiung Exhibition Center. Focusing on supply chain development for Taiwan’s wind power industry, the event features 200-plus booths representing more than 100 companies from such countries as Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, U.K. and U.S. (HC-E)
 
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