After three island-wide blackouts in less than a year, concerns about Taiwan’s power generation capacity and grid resilience continue to grow. Last September, an article in Taiwan Business TOPICS posed the question of whether Taiwan is facing a looming power crunch. Just half a year later, the question has changed to “is Taiwan’s power crunch…
Three recent island-wide blackouts have laid bare the degree of strain put on Taiwan’s grid and the people keeping it running. As a result, Taipower now finds itself in a race against time and budget to ensure the grid’s future stability. The immediate cause of Taiwan’s latest major blackout is indisputable – in fact, it…
Several regular festivals and markets selling unique plant-based foods have been popping up around the island, attracting a new generation of non-meat-eaters, as well as omnivores eager to explore this growing trend. Even though I am usually a business reporter and my friend, Hung Fu-wei, a school counselor, once in a while we get together…
Two questions appearing on the ballot for Taiwan’s December referendum are expected to put up major barriers to the island’s plans to transform its energy mix if they pass. On December 18, Taiwan citizens will be voting on four referendum proposals: one to ban pork containing ractopamine, one to combine future referendum votes with national…
With new technology and investments, geothermal power could become a viable energy source in Taiwan – as long as regulatory hurdles are overcome. Given Taiwan’s location on the Pacific “ring of fire,” its potential for geothermal energy has long been recognized. With more than 4,000 hot spring sites on the island, there is plenty of…
As Taiwan moves toward its goal of nuclear decommissioning and increasing renewable energy use, it is threatened with an insufficient electricity supply. To fend off what some say is an imminent crisis, Taiwan must accelerate its development of solar and wind power. When President Tsai Ing-wen ran for Taiwan’s top office, one of her signature…
With extremely low fertility rates and a population barreling toward super-aged status, Taiwan must think creatively about how to counter the worst effects of demographic change. At 1.218 children per woman, Taiwan has the lowest fertility rate in the world, below those of South Korea and Singapore, according to a 2019 report by the U.S….
Despite its lack of member status in the UN and exclusion from official participation in the organization’s Sustainable Development Goals program, Taiwan has answered the call in its own way, adapting the SDGs to the island’s particular circumstances and conducting voluntary reviews to measure its progress on multiple indicators. In 2015, the United Nations (UN)…
While the world has become increasingly familiar with Taiwanese semiconductor giants like TSMC and UMC, these companies rely on the support of a tightly knit, specialized local supply chain. Located in Taiwan’s silicon stronghold of Hsinchu County is a world-class leader in the island’s robust semiconductor supply chain. The company in question is not the…
After a year with no typhoons, Taiwan is currently experiencing its worst drought in more than half a century. Reservoirs revealed their eerie secrets as the water level receded: bridges, schools, and even whole abandoned villages were uncovered. As of April, the worst-hit areas of Taichung and Miaoli Counties have been put on “Red Alert,”…
