Thoughts from CY Huang

Hi, there,
Welcome to the first issue of the MAMA newsletter. With these newsletters, we would like to provide you with the latest ocean policy, offshore wind farms related projects and regulations, and breakthrough biotechnology startups in Taiwan. Our goal in producing the biweekly newsletter is to keep our membership and strategic partners informed and involved.
Let me clarify why I initiated the Mediterranean and Asia Marine Alliance first. Taiwan is an island surrounded by the sea which is rich in marine resources, and it’s an important asset for the living and development of generations of Taiwanese people. Besides, Taiwan started to transform its energy policies under the DPP government which has powered the impressive offshore wind growth in these years. In the near future, Taiwan will be the most attractive offshore wind market in Asia. The last is due to the complementary development of technology and economy, there are increasing interactions among Taiwan, Israel, and the Mediterranean area in recent years. Now is the best time to connect resources across the regions through the dialogue of the ocean.
Except for the biweekly newsletter, we will launch the MAMA accelerator, and podcast related to offshore wind energy policy, trending biotechnology themes.
Stay tuned with us and let’s make the thing happen!

CY Huang
Find me at https://twitter.com/CYHuang12
https://www.linkedin.com/company/fcc-partners-asia/

Ocean Policies

1. South Korean and Japanese ambitions face political hurdles

• Japan and South Korea has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. In South Korea, President Moon Jae-in aims to raise the country’s wind power generation to 12GW by 2030.
• Grid structure was developed on the assumption that large baseload plants would be the main power source. Renewables get lower priority as their power supply is unstable versus baseload power.

Source: https://www.petroleum-economist.com/articles/low-carbon-energy/renewables/2020/south-korean-and-japanese-ambitions-face-political-hurdles

2. Japan wind power group aims for 10 GW offshore wind capacity by 2030

• Japan’s feed-in tariffs (FIT) and newly extended offshore-wind-power licences are drawing big names into Japan’s wind power sector.
• Big players such as Orsted and RWE are considering joint bid with local partners in planned auctions .

Source: https://energy.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/renewable/japan-wind-power-group-aims-for-10-gw-offshore-wind-capacity-by-2030/77274517

3. Indonesia to issue feed-in tariffs to boost renewable energy sector

• The feed-in tariffs will be divided into two stages. The first will offer renewable power plant developers a fixed electricity price for 12 years.
• At the second stage, and on the plant’s thirteenth year, the government will offer an even lower fixed price until the end of the contract.

Source: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/productline/power-generation/indonesia-to-issue-feed-in-tariffs-to-boost-renewable-energy-sector/articleshow/73962162.cms

Offshore Wind

1. Total and Macquarie to develop South Korea wind projects

• The wind projects have a potential joint capacity of around 2.3 gigawatts (GW), and Total and Macquarie aim to launch construction of the first project of around 500 megawatts by the end of 2023.
• South Korea wants to build more renewable power plants and reduce its reliance on coal as part of efforts to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
Source: https://energy.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/renewable/total-and-macquarie-to-develop-south-korea-wind-projects/77867705

2. Mainstream Renewable and AIT to develop offshore wind in Vietnam

• Ireland-based Mainstream Renewable Power and Advance Information Technologies (AIT) have agreed to develop an offshore wind project in Vietnam.
• The companies signed a joint development agreement to develop the 500MW project in Ben Tre province.
• The companies expect the project to achieve financial close and begin construction works by 2023-24. The project is expected to come online by 2025-26.

Source: https://www.power-technology.com/news/mainstream-renewable-ait-develop-offshore-wind-project-vietnam/

3. Ørsted plans 2nd green bond issuance to fund Taiwanese offshore wind project

• Ørsted A/S plans to issue up to NT$15 billion of green unsecured senior bonds to finance its Greater Changhua 1 & 2 offshore wind project in Taiwan.
• The bonds would be issued in three tranches with maturities of seven, 10 and 20 years, according to a news release. The company said the final sizes, tranches and pricing of the bonds will be determined when the book-building process closes.
Source: https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/216-rsted-plans-2nd-green-bond-issuance-to-fund-taiwanese-offshore-wind-project-61108648

4. Japanese Trio Developing Next-Gen Floating Wind Platform

• The Japanese MODEC, Toyo Construction and Furukawa Electric have partnered up to develop a next-generation floating wind platform and mooring system.
• Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) selected the parties to develop the project as part of the public offering of research and development for technology to reduce costs of floating offshore wind turbines.
Source: https://www.offshorewind.biz/2020/11/02/japanese-trio-developing-next-gen-floating-wind-platform/

5. Wind power installations set for record year despite pandemic – GWEC

• Wind power installations are due to grow by nearly a fifth in 2020 and reach record levels despite the coronavirus pandemic, according to GWEC.
• This global total marks a 6% decrease from GWEC’s pre-pandemic forecasts in the first quarter of 2020, while an installation rush in China means the 6.5GW forecast for offshore wind in 2020 is up 5% from the industry body’s earlier prediction.
• The industry body stated that wind’s continued growth during the coronavirus pandemic demonstrates its ability to build sustainable and reliable economies.

Source: https://www.windpowermonthly.com/article/1699049/wind-power-installations-set-record-year-despite-pandemic-%E2%80%93-gwec

🔔 MAMA Announcement

🔔 MAMA set to launch Accelerator Program designed to help startups related to marine tech or marine AI, ocean, and offshore wind farms. Welcome to join us and get success together!

🔔 MAMA will interview industry leaders related to marine tech and offshore wind farms, CEOs, and political powers to share their visions and thoughts. Stay tuned with us!

MAMA Official Site: https://marinealliance.com.tw/
If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to email us at lydie.chen@fccpartner.com