Taiwan's Offshore Wind Turbines Withstand Typhoon Danas, Power Restored to Hundreds of Thousands

Despite widespread power outages, Taiwan's advanced offshore wind infrastructure demonstrates resilience against severe weather.

More than 400 offshore wind turbines in Taiwan remained undamaged as Typhoon Danas made its way across the island. Simultaneously, electricity has been restored to over 450,000 households that experienced power disruptions due to the storm, according to information from the Energy Administration and Taiwan Power Co. (Taipower).

As of the end of May this year, Taiwan had installed over 400 offshore wind turbines in the Taiwan Strait, with 375 of them connected to the national grid, contributing more than 3 GW of capacity. The Energy Administration had previously mandated that operators regularly report on the status of their turbines and power generation as part of established safety protocols.

Following confirmation with the operators after Typhoon Danas passed through western Taiwan, no damage to the wind turbines has been reported. Taiwan, in collaboration with Japan, implemented a new typhoon-resistance standard in 2017 for offshore wind turbines, requiring them to meet Class T specifications. This standard mandates that turbines can withstand an average wind speed of 57 meters per second over a 10-minute period, equivalent to a Beaufort scale 17 wind or a typhoon. This requirement is noted as being more stringent than Europe's Class 1A standard.

These turbines are engineered to automatically shut down and secure their blades when wind speeds surpass 25 meters per second, preventing damage from excessively rapid rotation.

In contrast, the typhoon caused significant damage to the onshore power infrastructure. Taipower reported that over 650 electricity poles and three transmission towers collapsed due to the typhoon, leading to power outages for more than 710,000 households at the storm's peak. By 6 p.m. on Monday, power had been restored to over 450,000 households, representing more than 60 percent of those affected.

The regions most severely impacted by the outages were Chiayi County and Chiayi City, which together experienced over 250,000 power outages, and Tainan, where nearly 190,000 households lost electricity. Taipower mobilized over 4,000 personnel to carry out emergency repairs.

Typhoon Danas brought strong winds upon making landfall in Budai Township, Chiayi County, late Sunday. The Central Weather Administration recorded gusts at a manned station in Tainan reaching 41.1 meters per second at 10:52 p.m. on Sunday, marking the third-highest wind speed recorded at that station in its history.