Hsinta power station

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Hsinta power station (興達發電廠) is an operating power station of at least 4310-megawatts (MW) in Kaohsiung, Yongan, Taiwan with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Hsing-ta.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Hsinta power station	Kaohsiung, Yongan, Kaohsiung, Taiwan	22.856179, 120.197438 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the power station.

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit CC1, Unit CC2, Unit CC3, Unit CC4, Unit CC5, Unit New 1, Unit New 2, Unit New 3: 22.856179, 120.197438
• Unit 1, Unit 3, Unit 2, New Unit 1, New Unit 2, Unit 4: 22.85577, 120.197167

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	CHP	Start year	Retired year
Unit CC1	operating	liquefied natural gas	442	combined cycle	not found	1998	2027 (planned)
Unit CC2	operating	liquefied natural gas	442	combined cycle	not found	1998	2027 (planned)
Unit CC3	operating	liquefied natural gas	442	combined cycle	not found	1998	2027 (planned)
Unit CC4	operating	liquefied natural gas	442	combined cycle	not found	1998	2027 (planned)
Unit CC5	operating	liquefied natural gas	442	combined cycle	not found	1999	2027 (planned)
Unit New 1	construction	liquefied natural gas	1300	combined cycle	not found	2023	–
Unit New 2	construction	liquefied natural gas	1300	combined cycle	not found	2024	–
Unit New 3	construction	liquefied natural gas	1300	combined cycle	not found	2024	–
Unit 1	operating	coal - bituminous	500	subcritical	–	1982	2023 (planned)
Unit 3	operating	coal - bituminous	550	subcritical	–	1985	2025 (planned)
Unit 2	operating	coal - bituminous	500	subcritical	–	1983	2023 (planned)
New Unit 1	cancelled	coal - unknown	1000	unknown	–	–	–
New Unit 2	cancelled	coal - unknown	1000	unknown	–	–	–
Unit 4	operating	coal - bituminous	550	subcritical	–	1986	2025 (planned)

CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
Unit CC1	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit CC2	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit CC3	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit CC4	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit CC5	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit New 1	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit New 2	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit New 3	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER)	Taiwan Power Company (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]
Unit 1	Taiwan Power Co (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]	–
Unit 3	Taiwan Power Co (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]	–
Unit 2	Taiwan Power Co (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]	–
New Unit 1	Taiwan Power Co (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]	–
New Unit 2	Taiwan Power Co (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]	–
Unit 4	Taiwan Power Co (TAIPOWER) [100.0%]	–

Background

Hsinta power station is a coal- and gas-fired power station. The coal units consist of two 500 MW and two 550 MW units built from 1982 to 1986. It is owned by Taiwan Power Company (Taipower), and is located in Hsinta, Kaohsiung County. The power station sits adjacent to the Yongan Wetland, an important habitat for wild birds.

Coal-fired Units 1 and 2 are expected to be decommissioned in 2023 and coal-fired Units 3 and 4 are scheduled to be decommissioned in 2026. They are planned to be replaced by three new natural gas generating units of 390 MW each.

In November 2018, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said units 1-2 would be retired in 2023 and units 3-4 in 2024. In June 2019, it was reported that units 3-4 would be put on standby in 2024 and used only when needed, with priority given to gas-fired power.

There are currently 5 combined cycle units of 445 MW each at the site, all fueled by natural gas and operating since 1998-1999. These 5 units are expected to be decommissioned from 2026 to 2027.

In March 2022, a Taipower equipment malfunction led to twelve hours of power outages across Taiwan. The power grid lost a third of its capacity, and the Hsinta station was were the incident began. Several other stations went offline as a result. According to reports, the incident was caused by human error.

In September 2022, Taipower discussed strategy changes aimed at avoiding outages like what occurred at the Hsinta power station in March. They would attempt a distributed microgrid method, which reduces interregional power supplies and increases resilience. Hsinta power station would supply the Southeastern Taiwan Science Park. The company planned to invest NT$564.5 billion (US$18.13 billion) towards this goal over ten years.

Biomass conversion of coal unit(s)

In April 2023, it was reported that one coal-fired unit at Hsinta power station was to be converted to a biomass-fueled unit, presumably Unit 1, which was scheduled for retirement in 2023. As of November 2023, the website of EPC company Gibsin also indicated in its list of current projects that "Hsinta Power Station Unit No. 1" was undergoing a biomass "retrofit" conversion. At the time, it was unclear if Unit 1 had halted coal combustion or was still operating.

Hsinta Power Plant Combined Cycle Renewal Project

Hsinta Power Plant Combined Cycle Renewal Project, via taipower.com.tw

As of December 2020, three new combined cycle units were planned and expected be commissioned from 2023-2026.

In April 2021, in response to a public protest in Kaohsiung, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) confirmed Taipower plans to decommission all four coal-fired generators at the Hsinta plant in five years' time: The No. 1 and 2 coal-fired generators are scheduled to be decommissioned in 2023 and replaced with gas, and the No. 3 and 4 generators will be reserved for emergency use after new natural gas-powered units go online in 2024, and will be decommissioned at the end of 2025. At the public protest, demonstrators called for the coal-fired units to be decommissioned immediately, noting they had been a major source of air pollution in the city for decades.

As of May 2022, construction or pre-construction work had begun on all three units of the Hsinta Power Plant Combined Cycle Renewal Project. The new project will have a capacity of 3900 MW and was scheduled for completion between February 2024 and August 2025.

Articles and Resources

Additional data

To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.