January 3, 2026 — In response to the promotion of national green energy policies and the rapid development of the offshore wind power industry, the Port and Navigation Bureau of the Ministry of Communications completed the construction of the “Vessel Traffic Service (VTS)” at Taichung Port, which was officially opened this morning (3rd). Accompanied by Director Lu Xiaojun of the Marine Protection Administration, Director Li Junli of the Energy Administration of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Chairman Zhou Yonghui of the Taiwan Port Corporation, Director Han Zhenhua of the Department of Shipping Administration of the Ministry of Communications, and Director Ye Xielong of the Port Administration, they delivered speeches and inspected the VTS Center of the New Offshore Wind Farm.
In his speech, Executive Yuan President Zhuo Rongtai pointed out that the development of green energy in offshore wind farms is an important policy direction for Taiwan to promote net-zero emissions by 2050, and the shipping industry is responsible for the transportation of more than 90% of Taiwan’s international trade goods, which is also an important lifeblood of Taiwan’s economic development. The “New Ten Constructions of AI” announced by the Executive Yuan to the Chinese people last year is to hope that all industries and industries can accelerate the co-prosperity and development of major industries and AI technology through smart applications , can devote themselves to the development of the industry without worries. President Zhuo said that he will continue to cooperate with local governments to promote various established policies, and at the same time urge various ministries and commissions to introduce the application of AI and other innovative technologies to deepen the application of various public services, further strengthen the overall security resilience of the country, ensure the safety of people’s lives and property, and steadily promote the sustainable development of national energy.
Minister Chen Shikai of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said that Taiwan is the fifth largest wind power developer in the world, and in addition to continuing to promote the country’s overall green energy policy, ship navigation safety should also be strengthened to balance the sustainable development of green energy and shipping. Therefore, the Ministry of Communications, based on the responsibilities of the national maritime authorities, comprehensively takes stock of the future development of Taiwan’s shipping and ports, supervises the Port Authority to make advanced arrangements from a forward-looking perspective, and adheres to the core concept of “making good use of innovative technology and wisdom to protect aviation safety”, building a new offshore wind farm navigation space transportation service center, and comprehensively upgrading the ship transportation service system. Minister Chen emphasized that the new Ship Traffic Service (VTS) system has been optimized and upgraded in three aspects: “more comprehensive monitoring scope”, “strengthening system resilience” and “strengthening public-private collaboration”, which not only greatly expands the navigation space monitoring range from 673 square kilometers to 4,000 square kilometers, which is 6 times the original monitoring area, but also extends the monitoring sea area from Changhua to New Taipei, and ensures uninterrupted monitoring services through dual mainframes, dual networks and uninterruptible power supply systems, and public-private collaboration is also a pioneering initiative of the new VTS system. By connecting with wind farm AIS and radar, the Port Authority effectively eliminates blind spots in monitoring, and the public and private sectors jointly protect the safety of wind farms and ship navigation. This is not only an important achievement of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications in coordinating with energy policies to promote the safety management of wind farm waters, but also demonstrates Taiwan’s determination to promote green energy policies.
The opening of the new VTS center for offshore wind farms symbolizes that China’s smart aviation safety has entered a new stage. In the future, with the continuous development of offshore wind power, the Ministry of Communications is ready to continue to maintain an aviation safety management system that is seamlessly in line with international standards, and will also actively introduce innovative technologies such as AI, so that the front-line colleagues of the Port Bureau can use the most advanced tools to protect navigation safety and ensure that every voyage can be safe and smooth, so as to achieve “technology leadership. Protect aviation safety”.
