TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan will reach its target of 20% green energy one or two years later than the originally proposed 2025, Economic Affairs Minister Wang Mei-hua (王美花) said Tuesday (March 29).

The current government wants to make Taiwan nuclear-free by 2025, decommissioning its three nuclear power plants while increasing its reliance on more environmentally friendly energy sources.

During a debate at the Legislative Yuan about power blackouts earlier this month, it emerged that the proportion of green energy to be produced in 2025 is likely to amount to 15.27% of total energy production, not the 20% previously planned, CNA reported.

Wang denied opposition statements that the aim of 20% had been postponed until 2028. She said the target could be reached in 2026 at the earliest or in 2027, but precise calculations still have to be made.

When the plan for a nuclear-free homeland was launched in 2016, the recent surge in demand for electricity had not been foreseen, according to Wang. Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) denied that state utility firm the Taiwan Power Company is making plans to extend the life of the nuclear power plants beyond 2025.