Date: 2025-09-11

Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Chien-hsin Lai led a delegation to attend the "15th APEC Energy Ministerial Meeting," held on August 27-28 in Busan, South Korea. He shared Taiwan's achievements in renewable energy development, strategies for enhancing grid resilience, and examples of artificial intelligence (AI) applications in the energy sector. Representatives from member economies and industries at the meeting unanimously recognized the importance of pursuing strong, balanced, secure, and sustainable economic growth.

The meeting was chaired by Minister Kim Jung-Kwan of South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. Member economies unanimously approved the post-meeting Joint Statement on the Energy Ministerial Meeting, announcing the theme chosen by the host Korea: "accelerating sustainable, affordable, reliable, secure, and innovative energy for a prosperous future." The statement emphasizes accelerating energy system modernization and innovation through the development and deployment of technologies. The joint statement also highlights consensus reached by each economy to broaden access to energy supplies by reinforcing power grids as well as developing and enhancing resilience of other energy infrastructure, while respecting the energy security of each economy, and to promote the secure adoption of a broad range of technologies in a responsible manner, including digital and emerging technologies such as AI.

In his remarks at the opening ceremony, Vice Minister Lai highlighted that Taiwan's offshore wind power capacity had risen to fifth in the world in 2024, with the country ranking second globally in annual newly installed offshore wind capacity, demonstrating the effectiveness of Taiwan's energy diversification strategy. During the discussion on "Electricity Expansion for a Stable Supply," he emphasized that Taiwan, as a densely populated island economy, faces continuously growing electricity demand and a centralized grid structure. Since 2022, Taiwan has implemented the "Grid Resilience Strengthening Construction Plan," focusing on decentralized grid, robust grid engineering, and enhanced system protection. Complemented by the deployment of microgrids and energy storage systems, the plan aims to ensure the stability of the power supply system and prevent single incidents from causing widespread, prolonged outages.

On the topic of "Strengthening Grid Security and Reliability" during the meeting, member economies agreed on the importance of expanding transmission capacity and modernizing the grid, through energy storage systems and cross-border electricity trade to ensure regional power stability. Vice Minister Lai shared that Taiwan is committed to improving the flexibility of power dispatch and balancing electricity demand during peak and off-peak periods, while simultaneously promoting the deployment of energy storage systems at both the generation and consumer ends. In addition, the government is investing nearly USD 20 billion to build a more robust power system, enhance information transparency, and apply AI technologies to improve energy efficiency, thereby further enhancing grid security and reliability.

During the session on "AI-Driven Energy Innovation," Vice Minister Lai emphasized Taiwan's commitment to AI development. Beyond its application in high-tech industries, this innovative technology is also being extended to small and medium-sized enterprises. As an example, the "Adaptive Cold Energy Management System (ACEMS)" implemented in convenience stores leverages intelligent energy management to effectively reduce peak loads and overall energy consumption, achieving average energy savings of 10-15%.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs noted that through participation in this year's APEC Energy Ministerial Meeting, Taiwan engaged in in-depth bilateral exchanges with the host, South Korea, and over one-third of member economies on topics such as renewable energy, grid resilience, and AI applications. Taiwan has utilized this important multilateral platform to demonstrate its determination in promoting energy security and resilience, while continuing to deepen cooperation and connections with international partners in the pursuit of energy transition.

Spokesperson for Energy Administration, Ministry of Economic Affairs: Deputy Director General, Chih-Wei Wu
Contact Phone Number: 02-2775-7750, 0922-339-410
Email Address: cwwu@moeaea.gov.tw

Business Contact: Director, Fang-Ling Liao
Contact Phone Number: 02-2775-7710, 0912-089-923
Email Address: flliao@moeaea.gov.tw