Ørsted has inaugurated the Ørsted Taiwan Offshore Wind Farms Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Hub in the Port of Taichung, Taiwan.
The O&M hub is the first operations facility with green design and the largest in terms of size and offshore service capacity in the Asia-Pacific region, the world’s leading offshore wind farm developer said.
It’s built with the aim to serve four Greater Changhua offshore wind farms with a combined capacity of approximately 2.4 GW.
”Taiwan is our first market of entry in Asia-Pacific and home to our regional headquarters,” Mads Nipper , Group President and CEO of Ørsted, said.
”We’re contributing significantly to Taiwan’s energy transition through the 1.82 GW capacity we’ve been awarded and more than 5.6 GW of new projects in the pipeline. The inauguration of our O&M hub, which is the first operations facility we’ve built outside of Europe and a significant investment we’ve made in this market, clearly demonstrates our long-term commitment to Taiwan and our dedication to create a world that runs entirely on green energy.”
Ørsted began O&M deployment in 2018 with a strategic plan to establish full-scale operations, which is an unprecedented industrial practice in Taiwan. The company brought in its O&M expertise and experience to Taiwan by cultivating a local O&M team of technicians and operations professionals, launching a customised service operation vessel (SOV), and investing in building an O&M hub.
”Ørsted teams have been committed to sharing our more than 30 years of expertise and experience with Taiwan since day one through introducing our industry-leading build-to-operate business model,” Christy Wang , General Manager of Ørsted Taiwan, said.
”The unique O&M hub, together with the bespoke SOV and the Taiwanese O&M team, are excellent examples of how we ensure stable, clean energy output and have pioneered the offshore wind industry across wind farm lifecycles. We’ll remain Taiwan’s most reliable green energy partner and continue to drive industry changes to create values and benefits.”
The hub is designed in accordance with global standards from Ørsted’s O&M portfolio to oversee the daily operations of offshore wind farms, ensure optimal clean energy output, and manage all safety aspects related to the works carried out by the offshore O&M technicians, the company said.
Moreover, the facility uses locally manufactured, energy-saving, and sustainable materials to reduce carbon footprint and contribute to Ørsted’s 2025 carbon neutrality goal. The O&M hub meets the gold-rating certification criteria of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).
Ørsted has also set up a learning centre at the O&M hub to welcome local communities and stakeholders to learn about offshore wind and inspire the next generation of professionals and talent.