TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of Economic Affairs said Shinfox Energy’s delisting in June will not affect Taipower’s offshore wind farm project off Changhua, which is being carried out by its subsidiary Foxwell Energy, CNA reported.
At a Thursday press conference, Vice Minister of Economic Affairs Lai Chien-hsin (賴建信) said the wind farm project is more than 96% complete, with about one-third of the subsea cables and wind turbines to be installed. He noted that Taipower will oversee Foxwell under the contract to ensure construction payments are made on schedule.
Taipower said the wind farm will have a total installed capacity of 300 MW upon completion. The project was awarded to Foxwell Energy under a turnkey contract worth NT$62.88 billion (US$1.94 billion) and is expected to generate more than 1 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually.
Lai added that Taipower has teams in place to manage risks during contract execution. Taipower said it will continue to monitor the company’s financial condition.
Taiwan has installed more than 400 offshore wind turbines and operates around seven wind farms nationwide. Taipower added that its other wind projects off Taichung and Changhua are proceeding as scheduled.
Foxwell said the Russia-Ukraine war, global inflation, and rising interest rates have increased costs for its wind farm project, resulting in significant losses. Despite applying to Taipower for an additional NT$5.55 billion in funding, it said the adjustment did not significantly offset the losses.
Foxwell said its wind turbine installation contractor also demanded full advance payment for the project, leading to cash flow difficulties. This led its parent company to report a negative net worth of NT$180 million in its first-quarter results.
According to the Taiwan Stock Exchange, Shinfox failed to meet certain requirements under the Securities and Exchange Act and reported financial losses. The company will therefore be delisted on June 23.
Shinfox shares fell to the daily limit down at the open on Thursday, with more than 22,000 sell orders left unmatched. Shares of its other subsidiaries also hit the daily limit down on the same day.
