宜蘭清水電廠浴火重生

首座民營地熱電廠 因故關廠近30年

The first private thermal power plant was closed for nearly 30 years due to some reasons

宜蘭清水地熱觀光遊憩區，常見遊客煮蛋、煮玉米，正是運用「地熱能」。許多宜蘭人都知道，這裡曾有一座地熱電廠。1981年，因應全球能源危機，政府在此建成了一座3MW的地熱機組。然而，由於地熱井內水質含有碳酸鹽類，導致井壁結垢阻塞，出水量逐漸減少，到1993年時，發電量已不足原先容量的10%，最終關廠，台灣的地熱發電也隨之沉寂。

At the Qingshui Geothermal Sightseeing and Recreation Area in Yilan, it is common for tourists to boil eggs and corn using "geothermal energy". Many people in Yilan know that there used to be a geothermal power plant here. In 1981, in response to the global energy crisis, the government built a 3MW geothermal unit here. However, because the water quality in the geothermal wells contained carbonates, the walls of the geothermal wells were scaled and blocked, and the water output gradually decreased. By 1993, the power generation capacity was less than 10% of the original capacity, and the plant was eventually shut down, and geothermal power generation in Taiwan also became silent.

近年來，隨著再生能源需求的增加，地熱能重新受到重視。賴清德指出，氣候危機迫在眉睫，淨零碳排已成全球趨勢，世界各國都在逐步減少化石燃料，改用再生能源。台灣位於環太平洋火山帶，地熱資源豐富。「清水地熱電廠是台灣唯一的MW級地熱電廠，也是台灣能源轉型、邁向2050淨零碳排的里程碑。」總統賴清德期許經濟部與民間業者合作，讓台灣的地熱能持續發展。

In recent years, with the increase in demand for renewable energy, geothermal energy has received renewed attention. Lai Qingde pointed out that the climate crisis is imminent and net-zero carbon emissions have become a global trend. Countries around the world are gradually reducing fossil fuels and switching to renewable energy. Taiwan is located in the Pacific Ring of Fire and is rich in geothermal resources. "The Qingshui Geothermal Power Plant is Taiwan's only MW-scale geothermal power plant, and it is also a milestone in Taiwan's energy transformation and moving towards net-zero carbon emissions by 2050." President Lai Ching-te hopes that the Ministry of Economic Affairs will cooperate with private industry players to enable the sustainable development of Taiwan's geothermal energy.

相較於太陽能和風力發電，地熱能更加穩定，不會因為日落或風力減弱而停止發電。清水地熱電廠的裝置容量約為4.2MW，每小時可發電3000度，年發電量可達2500萬度。如果未來運行順利，宜元公司計劃將清水地熱機組擴建到9.5MW。

Compared with solar and wind power generation, geothermal energy is more stable and will not stop generating electricity due to sunset or weakening wind. The Qingshui Geothermal Power Plant has a device capacity of approximately 4.2MW, can generate 3,000 kWh of electricity per hour, and has an annual power generation capacity of 25 million kWh. If the operation goes smoothly in the future, Yiyuan Company plans to expand the clean water geothermal unit to 9.5MW.

地熱井深度如同四座101大樓 「取熱不取水」將地熱水回注地底

The depth of the geothermal well is as deep as four 101 buildings, "extracting heat but not water" and injecting geothermal water back into the ground.

重啟清水地熱電廠並不容易，耗資7.6億重新配置管線、發電機組、修復原有地熱井等工作。既有地熱井老舊，需要花費大量心力進行清理和整建。

Restarting the Qingshui Geothermal Power Plant is not easy. It costs 760 million to reconfigure pipelines, generator sets, repair original geothermal wells and other work. The existing geothermal wells are old and require a lot of effort to clean and renovate.

清水地熱的熱源約為150度，適合設置中低溫熱水型地熱發電，因此採用有機朗肯熱機循環（ORC）發電系統，利用熱交換將機組內的有機溶液加熱推動發電機。有機溶液使用後經氣冷降溫，再回到系統重新使用，而地熱水則完全回注到地底，避免地熱水資源的耗損。

The heat source of clean water geothermal is about 150 degrees, which is suitable for setting up medium and low temperature hot water geothermal power generation. Therefore, an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) power generation system is used to heat the organic solution in the unit through heat exchange to drive the generator. After use, the organic solution is air-cooled and then returned to the system for reuse, while the geothermal water is completely injected back into the ground to avoid the loss of geothermal water resources.

過去，台灣在地熱開發方面經驗不足，行政部門花費較多時間核准。經濟部將持續努力降低業者投資風險，盡可能提供資源，如調整躉購費率、提供掘井補助等。期許地熱能成為太陽能和風力發電之後，第三大的再生能源產業。

In the past, Taiwan had little experience in geothermal development, and the administrative department spent more time approving it. The Ministry of Economic Affairs will continue to work hard to reduce investment risks for operators and provide resources as much as possible, such as adjusting wholesale purchase rates and providing well digging subsidies. Geothermal energy is expected to become the third largest renewable energy industry after solar and wind power.