TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) announced on Saturday a shortlist of design proposals for its new ecological power plant in Kaohsiung and invited the public to vote for their favorite work on the project website.
The committee received quite a few excellent proposals which applied ideas of environmental protection to power plant construction. Many designs would have require complex and cutting-edge techniques, said Marcos Cruz, a professor at University of London, who also convened the judging committee for the international competition for Taipower’s Hsinta Ecological Power Plant.
Cruz said the five shortlisted works had come up with innovative ideas for the power plant while at the same time struck a balance with practicality.
We looked forward to seeing architects go deeper and be more meticulous with their designs for the final round of the competition, added Cruz.
The submission of proposals opened three months ago after Taipower announced plans to renovate its Hsinta Power Plant Area No. 2 while also incorporating a new site, a salt field wetland, and a historic housing complex adjacent to the existing area.
The project is part of the plan to increase the ratio of natural gas, as coal power and nuclear power are gradually reduced, thus buying time to develop and increase green electricity generation options, according to Taipower.
Taipower said it intended to change its current electricity generation systems in accordance with the government’s policies to eliminate nuclear power and eventually generate 20 percent of the country's electricity through green energy by 2025.
The five proposals shortlisted in the first round of the competition include a team from Taiwan and Portugal, and three teams from the U.S.
Taiwan’s team from the Department of Marine Environment and Engineering of National Sun Yat-sen University focused on the design of chimneys with the hope of exerting a minimum impact on the environment.
The New York-based firm Ether Ship, on the other hand, had a design proposal that would combine solar power panels with the power plant.
Both the Leers Weinzapfel Associates and Ressano Garcia architect firms, from the U.S. and Portugal respectively, proposed to create ecological spaces in the power plant site for educational and recreational activities.
In addition, L.A.-based Morphosis chose to introduce a recycling sewage system in its proposal so as to allow the water in the power plant be reused.
Taipopwer said the first prize would be announced on April 27 with a reward of NT$4 million, and people taking part in a vote for their favorite design on the project's website would also have a chance of getting a reward in return.
