The economics ministry is set to introduce a plan that would require more public places to set their air conditioning at 26 degrees Celsius or higher.
The plan is aimed at dealing with a possible electricity shortage in 2018. That’s following the recent suspension of construction on the nation’s fourth nuclear power plant.
The Energy Bureau under the Economics Ministry is set to introduce the plan during the national energy resources meeting slated for August.
Last February, the Energy Bureau issued a directive requiring certain kinds of public places to keep their air conditioning above 26 C. Those places include department stores, wholesalers, supermarkets, and banks. The bureau is set to add more places to the list, including theaters, KTVs, fast food restaurants, hair salons, clothing stores and book stores.
The energy bureau says increasing the temperature by just one degree can reduce electricity consumption by 6%.
Reports say that since the new air conditioning rules went into effect last year, Taiwan has cut its CO2 emissions by 13,000 tons.