TAICHUNG GAS PLANS: Cho Jung-tai said that Taipower’s work on an expansion of its gas-generation capacity and to sideline coal deserved his deepest gratitudeBy Chang Hsuan-tse / Staff reporter, with CNA請繼續往下閱讀...Work at Taichung Power Plant is on schedule to dismantle two coal-fired units amid its transition from coal to natural gas by 2034, Premier Cho Jung-tai （卓榮泰） said yesterday during an inspection of the site.Cho said that when he visited the power plant in 2024, everyone was hoping for clearer skies and better air quality.Air pollution has improved in the past few years, so the visit was to express his deepest gratitude to Taiwan Power Co （Taipower） personnel, he said during an inspection of work on the gas-fired units — the first phase of a two-phase expansion — and to dismantle the No. 1 and No. 2 coal-fired units.The plant’s first gas-fired unit is expected to begin commercial operations soon, while the second is expected to begin accepting dispatch next month, with March next year the target for commercial operations, he said.Taiwan is working toward net zero carbon emissions by 2050, but replacing coal with gas takes time, engineering expertise and patience from the central and local governments, he said.The Taichung plant would complete the transition from coal to gas by 2034, he said.The plant’s six coal-fired emergency reserve units would be tightly regulated and used only for limited periods in the event of major contingencies such as national security concerns or natural disasters, he said.They would only be used for maintenance and testing, and would not typically be generating power, he said.The central government aims to push for a review of the Taichung plant’s emergency reserve units to begin in 2030, with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Taipower to carefully assess and improve the transition plan, he said.Taipower later said in a statement that a formal reassessment of the plans for emergency reserve units is scheduled for 2032.Fulfilling the commitments depends on completing both phases of the gas-fired units on schedule, Cho said.The four gas units planned under the plant’s second-phase expansion have passed an environmental impact assessment, Cho said, adding that they are scheduled to go online in stages from 2031 to 2034, with four of the 10 coal-fired units to be dismantled and six kept as reserve units.Meanwhile, the Taichung City Government said that Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen （盧秀燕） is scheduled to visit the Taichung Power Plant next week to inspect the first-phase gas-fired units.The city government hopes that the central government would promptly present a coal-reduction plan for the plant through 2030, it said.The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Taipower have proposed reducing coal consumption to 10.5 million tonnes this year, but the next phase of reductions would not take place until after 2031 it said, calling on the central government to quickly make a commitment and set out concrete measures for further reducing coal use.新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
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