The Tsai administration pledged to reduce coal to 30 percent and increase natural gas and renewable energy to 50 percent and 20 percent of energy output, respectively, by 2025. Economic Affairs Minister Wang Mei-hua now says this will be difficult to achieve because of how much electricity the semiconductor industry uses.
Wang Mei-hua (Jan. 3, 2022), Economic Affairs Minister: “We now (estimate) that renewable energy will account for only 15 percent by the end of 2025.”
During an interview, Economic Affairs Minister Wang Mei-hua admitted the government probably won't achieve its renewable energy goal of 20 percent by 2025. Wang attributed this to economic growth and the semiconductor industry, saying a single TSMC plant uses up half the output of one Taichung Power Plant generator.
Wang Mei-hua (Jan. 3, 2022), Economic Affairs Minister: “The semiconductor (industry) needs a huge amount of (electricity). We estimate that by 2025, it will be using 317.5 billion kilowatt-hours. The denominator has grown.”
The Bureau of Energy's energy policy states that coal, natural gas and renewable energy will account for, respectively, 30 percent, 50 percent and 20 percent of energy output in 2025. The bureau's latest forecast, however, has renewable energy accounting for just 15.2 percent of energy output in 2025. One expert says operating reserve could fall below 6 percent in the next five years given the three major blackouts in 2021, rising energy consumption, the retirement of the second nuclear power plant in 2023, and new natural gas generators not becoming operational until 2025.
Liang Chi-yuan, Lecturer, National Central University: “Because of the relocation of the natural gas terminals, progress is delayed at least 2.5 years. Meanwhile, the environmental impact assessments for Xiehe Power Plant were not approved. Taichung will have to expand its terminals, but those environmental impact assessments were not approved either.”
Environmental groups say the government can't just focus on building new plants, and needs to cut energy use as well. The Tsai administration allocated just NT$100 million to energy conservation in 2021, with zero allocations for 2022 so far.
Tsai Hui-hsun, Energy Director, Energy Citizen of the Earth Taiwan: “You can't rely on green energy alone to become nuclear-free. Energy conservation is also very important. (The government) only allocated NT$100 million to energy conservation (in 2021) and has not even broached the topic for this year.”
Both environmental groups and experts say the government can't put all its eggs in the renewable energy basket and instead needs to provide land to or rezone land for renewable energy producers in a way that doesn't harm the environment.
經濟部長王美花接受媒體專訪，她坦承2025年能源配比目標，再生能源佔比20%可能無法達標。主要原因是經濟成長，用電量大增，尤其半導體業，光一個台積電5奈米廠就會用掉台中火力發電廠，半個機組發電量。
經濟部長王美花提到:「半導體真的（用電）需求多，所以我們推估到2025年，用電量確實是到3175億度，分母變大了。」
根據經濟部能源局公布的能源政策，到2025年，發電能源配比：燃煤30％、天然氣50％、再生能源是20％，但能源局最新評估指出，2025年再生能源發電占比僅能達到15.2％。
有能源專家表示，2021年發生三次重大跳電事件，隨著用電量大增，核二廠2023年除役，燃氣發電機組，最快也要等到2024年上線，2025年運轉，憂心未來五年，備轉容量率恐不到6%。
中央大學管理講座教授梁啟源表示:「因為三接外推的關係，至少慢了2.5年，四接那就是這個協和電廠，那邊要燃氣那邊環評沒有過，那台中的這個接收站要擴大，環評也沒有過。」
不過環保團體認為，不能光蓋電廠不節電，政府節電預算2021年，只編1億，而2022年至今，仍看不到編列節電預算草案。
地球公民基金會能源產業部主任蔡卉荀說:「達到非核家園，不是只有靠綠能可以達到，節能也是非常重要。最新的節能預算只有編列1億，他2022年要編多少，他也都沒有提出來。」
環團與專家學者都認為，政府不能只追求再生能源佔比達標，應協助再生能源業者取得土地， 以及「一地兩用」政策，法規如何鬆綁，符合環評，應加速進程。