Lcq5 Measures Ensure Tender

Following is a question by the Hon Stanley Ng and a written reply by the Secretary for Environment and Ecology Mr Tse Chinwan in the Legislative Council today April 29

Question

It has been reported that the recent ongoing tensions in the Middle East and uncertain outlook for international crude oil supply have caused oil prices to surge sharply thus further pushing up natural gas prices and as Qatar is one of the major sources of natural gas imports for Hong Kong the rise in energy costs will inevitably have a chain effect on local transport logistics and peoples livelihood The National 15th FiveYear Plan proposes to intensify the construction of new energy infrastructure which includes building offshore wind power bases promoting the development of deepsea and farsea wind power building external transmission corridors for clean energy bases and advancing mutual support projects for the power system etc In this connection will the Government inform this Council

1 whether it will consider revisiting and reallocating Hong Kongs energy mix as well as drawing up a specific timetable to gradually increase the proportion of electricity generated from renewable energy to 50 per cent

2 as it is learnt that given the limited land resources in Hong Kong and yet energy transition requires diversified supply modes whether the Government will proactively identify and plan suitable sites for setting up new offshore wind farms or onshore green energy facilities if so of the details if not the reasons for that

3 as there are views that energy storage systems play an important role in coping with energy supply fluctuations and enhancing power stability whether the Government will comprehensively examine the potential for developing energy storage technologies in Hong Kong and formulate specific policy directions and implementation timetable if so of the details if not the reasons for that and

4 as there are views pointing out that Hong Kong is now facing an urgent need for energy transition whether the Government can undertake to expedite the planning and construction of the power facilities in Tseung Kwan O Area 132 so as to ensure that such facilities can be put into operation as early as possible instead of being commissioned in 2035

Reply

President

In response to the question raised by the Hon Stanley Ng our reply is as follows

1 and 4 Based on the four energy policy objectives of safety reliability affordability and environmental performance the Government will through enhancing regional cooperation progressively increase the use of zerocarbon energy in electricity generation reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and achieve the longterm goal of netzero electricity generation as set out in the Hong Kongs Climate Action Plan 2050 ie to increase the share of zerocarbon energy in the fuel mix of electricity generation to about 60 per cent to 70 per cent by 2035 including 75 per cent to 10 per cent of local renewable energy and achieve the target of netzero electricity generation and carbon neutrality by 2050

The share of zerocarbon energy including nuclear energy and renewable energy accounted for about onefourth of the overall fuel mix of electricity generation in 2025 As regards the other fuels for electricity generation the shares of natural gas and coal were more than 50 per cent and less than 20 per cent respectively

With the enhancement of the Clean Energy Transmission System by end2026 Hong Kong will be able to gradually import more zerocarbon energy from the Chinese Mainland The Government also keeps planning ahead for the construction of electricity facilities to receive and process electricity transmitted to Hong Kong from other regions thereby further enhancing the capacity of supplying zerocarbon energy to Hong Kong Since the price of zerocarbon energy is more stable than that of fossil fuels increasing the use of zerocarbon energy will not only help stabilise electricity prices but also spearhead Hong Kongs highquality development

2 The Government has endeavoured to develop local renewable energy over the years and will continue to grapple with various objective constraints First we are striving to develop more wastetoenergy WtE facilities including the Integrated Waste Management Facilities Phase I IPARK1 that has commenced trial operation since December 2025 Upon full commissioning it is expected to generate about 480 million kilowatthours kWh of electricity per year Together with about 58 million kWh of electricity generated per year by other facilities already in operation these WtE facilities will be sufficient to meet the electricity demands of over 110 000 households each year In addition the Integrated Waste Management Facilities Phase 2 IPARK2 currently under planning is expected to generate 960 million kWh of surplus electricity per year for export to the grid apart from supporting the facilitys daily operation The Government has also approved about 24 billion for over 280 smallscale renewable energy projects including the installation of solar energy generation systems at various Government premises and facilities as well as the installation of WtE and hydropower systems at sewage treatment plants

As for offshore wind energy the Government previously explored its feasibility with the two power companies Although the relevant projects were not included in the 20242028 Development Plan of the two power companies due to the prohibitive construction costs at that time the Government will continue to keep in view the latest technological advancement of offshore wind energy The Government will also examine whether the relevant projects would become more costeffective during the 2028 Interim Review with a view to considering whether to include them in the 20292033 Development Plan of the two power companies

3 The objective of the Governments energy policy is to meet the energy needs of the community in a safe reliable and efficient manner