Energy production and economic growth in Taiwan: Challenges and solutions

Taiwan is an island in East Asia that strongly depends on imported fossil fuels. To reduce emissions and pollutants, there is interest in wind and solar energy. The current solar energy systems convert solar energy into electricity with high capital cost because of their low efficiency and high operational costs. This paper presents the position of renewable energy methods in Taiwan and the benefits of its expansion. This research suggests that the use of Photovoltaic/thermal (PV/T) collectors and wind turbines can provide appropriate solutions for electricity production due to the benefits of the long duration of insolation of solar collectors and the energy density of wind turbines. However, there are several challenges and problems that must be solved (land conditions and geographical positions are not appropriate for PV/T installation and wind energy system, respectively). Finally, a series of suggestions is presented to solve the economic problems associated with wind and solar energy systems.