Energy prices and energy self-sustainability 2022-2023

The main drama in the UK, and probably Europe at the moment, is cost of living and how prices of electricity and natural gas has gone up dramatically.

I don’t see this being spoken about or reported much in Taiwan, though (or maybe my topic mutings on the forum have been a bit too effective).

Personally, my payments have gone up 300% since the start of the year. Other friends either haven’t gone up at all (fixed price contracts) or they’re monthly payments have also increased by 300-500%.

Particularly in the UK, the energy-infrastructure supplier warned that if supply corridors were not stabilised then we might be facing planned evening blackouts of up to three hours per day.

Anything like that in Taiwan or elsewhere? Has payments increased for you? Or is Taiwan’s energy much more self-reliant? Geothermal, presumably?

(I’m sure there’s a thread on this somewhere but I can’t see it :stuck_out_tongue: )

Energy prices are pretty much controlled by the government, so Taipower has been racking up losses, but electricity is still so cheap that you don’t need to think about saving it. Most of electricity still comes from coal and other fossil fuels, some nuclear. Renewables are a small part of the energy mix.

Similar story with fuel.

Energy is nationalised in Taiwan so prices have been completely stable. In Europe however it’s a complete disaster.

For reference, in Taiwan it’s like 1%.

As the clown said, Taiwan’s government are acutely aware that energy prices are fundamental to social and economic stability, and they throw a lot of tax money at it. Taipower has been losing money for decades (on paper at least) but the government just bails them out. Same deal for their suppliers (Tatung, I believe, get a lot of sweeteners).

The UK government, OTOH, is currently run by wild-eyed religious fanatics obsessed with Russians and “carbon”, and who don’t seem particularly concerned that the population are on the verge of turning out with torches and pitchforks. The only thing stopping them, as far as I can tell, is that they can’t afford gasoline for their torches. Or pitchforks.

I just can’t see that happening here. One thing that all political parties agree on in Taiwan is that the juice must keep flowing, whatever happens, and they seem particularly disinclined to start or fund any wars.

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I think gasoline prices have gone up 30% in Taiwan. And electricity is subsidized by the government I believe to keep prices in check.