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Offshore Floating Solar in Taiwan Outperforms Land Arrays by 12%, Study Finds

Cooler, windier sea conditions raised output enough to outweigh higher offshore installation and upkeep costs.

Overview

  • The peer-reviewed study published Tuesday found Taiwan’s offshore array near Changbin produced about 12% more electricity than a nearby land farm over its lifetime.
  • Researchers normalized Chenya Energy’s 181 MW floating system and Taiwan Power’s 100 MW land project to 100 MWp to compare energy yield and carbon footprints.
  • The offshore site posted a higher lifetime net profit of roughly 11% even with slightly higher operations and maintenance work that includes frequent cleaning and debris patrols.
  • Cooler air and stronger sea winds over water kept panels 2–3°C lower on average, which raised efficiency and drove the higher output.
  • Deployment is still early, with mixed reliability signals from North Sea trials and the largest reported site in shallow waters off Shandong, China pointing to promise and open durability and ecology questions.