TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipower is unlikely to pay proposed water usage fees for hydropower generation at Feitsui Reservoir, with officials saying such charges may lack legal basis.
Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) told lawmakers on Wednesday that imposing water usage fees on Taipower for hydropower generation would be legally questionable. He added that if such fees were implemented, the revenue would go to the central government, per CNA.
Also, Kung cited a Control Yuan (監察院) assessment indicating that about 500 million tonnes of water from the reservoir flow into the sea annually. He said the utility’s actual water use for hydropower is about 1.15 million tonnes, suggesting minimal impact on water resources.
The issue was raised during a legislative committee review of the ministry's budget. Lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties questioned whether hydropower operations should be subject to water consumption fees.
DPP Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) asked whether such fees should apply. Lin Yuan-peng (林元鵬), director-general of the Water Resources Agency, said the charges are intended to promote conservation and are levied on large industrial users consuming more than 300 tonnes of water per day, per CNA.
Lin said hydropower generation does not consume water and is therefore exempt from the fee. He added that the same policy applies to all reservoirs across Taiwan.
He added that reservoir operations depend on water levels, with Feitsui Reservoir currently above 90% capacity. Management priorities include flood control, downstream supply, and safety.
Taipower Chair Tseng Wen-sheng (曾文生) explained that hydropower generation does not deplete water resources, guiding water from higher elevations to lower channels to produce electricity. He said the scale of water used for power generation is significantly smaller than the total volume discharged each year, according to a Control Yuan report.
KMT Legislator Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔) also raised concerns. Kung responded that water usage fees are collected by the central government. Any separate agreements between local governments and Taipower would require mutual consent, and the utility has not agreed to such arrangements.
