TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua apologized on Wednesday (April 17) for the power outage that impacted thousands of households in Taoyuan City the previous night, attributing the issue to a cable fault that will take time to fix.
The outage, which began in the afternoon and continued into the night, affected tens of thousands of homes. Taiwan Power Company restored electricity after emergency repairs, though lawmakers raised concerns about potential power shortages as summer approaches.
Speaking at the opening ceremony for Taipei AMPA, Autotronics Taipei, and 2035 E-Mobility Taiwan, Wang explained that the outage was caused by a cable fault, which was worsened by damage from the April 3 earthquake. Some units were immediately damaged, while others showed gradual signs of distress. Taiwan Power is swiftly repairing and adjusting these units, she noted, adding that the power supply is stable.
She assured that the earthquake-damaged units would be repaired by May, in time for the peak power usage period, ensuring a stable power supply.
Taiwan Power confirmed the earthquake caused damage, including twisted pipes and weakened structures, and is now conducting extensive equipment maintenance during low-demand periods to ensure stability.