TSMC Expected to be Affected by Increased Electricity Costs in Taiwan

[TheLostSwede]

The island of Taiwan is in many ways very much still stuck in an era where the government controls most utilities and where there is little to no competition. For example, the government controls fuel prices, be that for your motor vehicle or for cooking and heating. This also applies to the cost of electricity in most cases and the Ministry of Economic Affairs has announced that the electricity price will increase by up to 15 percent for high usage customers, which translates to the industry. The increase might sound tiny at just over 1.3 cents per kilowatt hour, for a total cost of 10.43 cents per kWh. However, a company like TSMC that uses a lot of electricity, is expected to see an increase in costs of at least US$135 million per year, according to some Taiwanese news sources, while others claim it'll be as much as US$270 million.

TSMC does in all fairness produce some of its own electricity thanks to solar panels on many of its buildings and the company has also invested heavily in renewable energy. In fact, TSMC has bought up almost all available renewable capacity in Taiwan and the company is committed to using 100 percent renewable energy in the long term. Currently a mere 8 percent (based on 2020 estimates) is coming from TSMC's own efforts, but the company should be at somewhere around 12-15 percent overall. Even so, these extra costs are likely to be reflected in future customer pricing. It's the first price hike in four years, but as Taiwan is a manufacturing nation, TSMC is unlikely to be the only company affected, but the price hike is related to global inflation and is targeting high-usage businesses and consumers alike.



View at TechPowerUp Main Site | Source

 

[mechtech]

Hmmm usually industries get bulk pricing and special prices compared to residential and commercial.

 

[Dave65]

My electric when up 20 percent, who can I charge for it like TSMC will?

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
Why does the source link go to the same page as the main site link
Source is yahoo news so why doesn't this pages source link go to it.

Asking for a friend

 

[Garrus]

I lived in Taiwan for 2 years and I usually had to pay electricity rates that the landlord demanded. I was surprised to hear that electricity can be as low as 10 cents per kWh when you basically have to pay 30-40 as an apartment dweller. I was told that Nuclear power was expensive and so we had to pay more. Is it really 10 cents to TSMC?

 

[zlobby]

My electric when up 20 percent, who can I charge for it like TSMC will?

Although rhetorical, the answer brings some deep insights...

 

[P4-630]

Hi,
Why does the source link go to the same page as the main site link
Source is yahoo news so why doesn't this pages source link go to it.

Asking for a friend

I said the same thing, I'm sure the original source link could be added here in the forum news as well.

 

[ThrashZone]

I said the same thing, I'm sure the original source link could be added here in the forum news as well.

Hi,
Indeed seeing the link says source you'd hope it went to the correct site which is yahoo news not tpu main page.

 

[Ferrum Master]

Last week we had a 23% price increase.

I expect MOAR.

Swede - your bills will suffer too, we all shall suffer equally

 

[theGryphon]

My electric when up 20 percent, who can I charge for it like TSMC will?

Are you providing some essential services at/from your home? If yes, increase your rate.

Or, ask for a salary raise if you didn't get a fair one.

In case your girlfriend has moved in and you really trust your hand, ask her to start chipping in...




Nah, don't ever do that.

 

[ThrashZone]

Hi,
Yeah she'll start running a meter her self

 

[ARF]

I lived in Taiwan for 2 years and I usually had to pay electricity rates that the landlord demanded. I was surprised to hear that electricity can be as low as 10 cents per kWh when you basically have to pay 30-40 as an apartment dweller. I was told that Nuclear power was expensive and so we had to pay more. Is it really 10 cents to TSMC?

Very weird - nuclear is the cheapest, in reality: Nuclear Energy Agency - Projected Costs of Generating Electricity - Levelised Cost of Electricity Calculator (oecd-nea.org)

 

[Denver]

My electric when up 20 percent, who can I charge for it like TSMC will?

If you use electricity to produce something you can charge customers.

 

[mechtech]

Very weird - nuclear is the cheapest, in reality: Nuclear Energy Agency - Projected Costs of Generating Electricity - Levelised Cost of Electricity Calculator (oecd-nea.org)

View attachment 252854

Typically Hydro is the cheapest form of electricity. As someone who works in the electric utility, that chart doesn't seem quite right.

 

[Aquinus]

Typically Hydro is the cheapest form of electricity. As someone who works in the electric utility, that chart doesn't seem quite right.

...as I understand it, hydro is relatively low cost for what you get out of it with the exception of environmental impacts. Nuclear actually is one of the cheapest with respect to what it costs to operate (fuel costs, people, etc.), however it usually takes a very long time to recoup that initial cost of the plant because they're so damn expensive and time consuming to build. However after many years, you start to see profit and the margins are pretty big given how much we get out of nuclear fuel compared to other fuels given their cost. It just takes a really long time to get there. When you build a nuclear plant, you're planning on several decades of operation.

 

[mechtech]

I lived in Taiwan for 2 years and I usually had to pay electricity rates that the landlord demanded. I was surprised to hear that electricity can be as low as 10 cents per kWh when you basically have to pay 30-40 as an apartment dweller. I was told that Nuclear power was expensive and so we had to pay more. Is it really 10 cents to TSMC?

About 20 years ago when I was in mining and metalurgy, the metalurgical site I worked at was getting power for 5c/kw.hr ($50/MW.hr). They consumed roughly 135MW on avg. continuously. So 135MW*$50/MW.hr*24hrs*30days/mo = $4,860,000 per month not including tax.

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

So they use close to a billion pounds of electricity? 1.3% was 270 millions,wow wtaf.

Price hike, wait what now.

 

[mechtech]

...as I understand it, hydro is relatively low cost for what you get out of it with the exception of environmental impacts. Nuclear actually is one of the cheapest with respect to what it costs to operate (fuel costs, people, etc.), however it usually takes a very long time to recoup that initial cost of the plant because they're so damn expensive and time consuming to build. However after many years, you start to see profit and the margins are pretty big given how much we get out of nuclear fuel compared to other fuels given their cost. It just takes a really long time to get there. When you build a nuclear plant, you're planning on several decades of operation.

yes and no
Nuclear is one of the most expensive (if not the most expensive) to operate due to the amount of safeties and employees. The capital investment and O&M is probably also the highest. After 20-25 years usually requires a major overhaul/rebuild and 50-60 is usually end of life for the facility. Where it averages out is the amount of power it can produce. Usually Nuke plants are 500MW to over 4000MW.
Then you have waste storage that has to be maintained for the next 1000 years. Nuclear exists because the demand for electricity and not every place on the planet has hydro capacity, so have to make power some how.

So they use close to a billion pounds of electricity? 1.3% was 270 millions,wow wtaf.

Price hike, wait what now.

lol

Takes a lot of power to make metal from ore.

As for the increase estimates to TSMC I would say show me your actual bill please. Half of it is probably AC to keep employees cool lol. I would question that estimate.

 

[zlobby]

Very weird - nuclear is the cheapest, in reality: Nuclear Energy Agency - Projected Costs of Generating Electricity - Levelised Cost of Electricity Calculator (oecd-nea.org)

View attachment 252854

I guess is has to do with waste fuel disposal and the many regulations for nuclear fuel. Or they are too in the price-rising spiral.

 

[DeathtoGnomes]

Very weird - nuclear is the cheapest, in reality: Nuclear Energy Agency - Projected Costs of Generating Electricity - Levelised Cost of Electricity Calculator (oecd-nea.org)

View attachment 252854

I read that, please point it out if I missed it, but I dont think that covers waste material handling.

I guess is has to do with waste fuel disposal and the many regulations for nuclear fuel. Or they are too in the price-rising spiral.

I didnt see that covered.

 

[R0H1T]

This could all be solved if we could have that "fusion" power, now where's that time traveler from the future when you need him the most!

 

[TheLostSwede]

I lived in Taiwan for 2 years and I usually had to pay electricity rates that the landlord demanded. I was surprised to hear that electricity can be as low as 10 cents per kWh when you basically have to pay 30-40 as an apartment dweller. I was told that Nuclear power was expensive and so we had to pay more. Is it really 10 cents to TSMC?

Your landlord were clearly taking advantage of you. I live in a house with my sambo and spend something like US$27-44 a month on electricity.
See link below for the current and new pricing per kWh.

Taiwan’s electricity price rises by 15% for largescale consumers | Taiwan News | Jun. 27, 2022 19:57

Electricity prices will increase because of soaring fuel prices, says MOEA official | Jun. 27, 2022 19:57

www.taiwannews.com.tw

Hi,
Why does the source link go to the same page as the main site link
Source is yahoo news so why doesn't this pages source link go to it.

Asking for a friend

This has already been discussed in a different thread. Not happy, take it up with @W1zzard.

Last week we had a 23% price increase.

I expect MOAR.

Swede - your bills will suffer too, we all shall suffer equally

Not by much though, as most of our bills are below the 1000 kWh limit for consumers and you only pay a bit more for whatever is above that.

As for the increase estimates to TSMC I would say show me your actual bill please. Half of it is probably AC to keep employees cool lol. I would question that estimate.

Clarified the news post to show it's per year.

 

[randomUser]

Government regulated prices a way better than free market.

You have to overpay to private business just for generating you the electricity bill. They all use the same power sources and resell the same energy. All it does is add another link into the energy producer -> consumer chain.

 

[TheLostSwede]

Government regulated prices a way better than free market.

You have to overpay to private business just for generating you the electricity bill. They all use the same power sources and resell the same energy. All it does is add another link into the energy producer -> consumer chain.

That seems to be the case in most countries, yes.

 

[Bomby569]

Ironically there will be less demand with the price increases, crypto