ECOVE to Greatly Boost Resource Cycling Efficiency, Says CEO Liao

Looking back on 2018, ECOVE has enhanced Resource Cycling Efficiency as its main strategic program and has shown outstanding performance in the realm of circular economy, including Energy-from-Waste (EfW), solar power, and recycling. 

Looking forward to 2019, ECOVE will continue expanding its overseas position and strive for more project cooperation opportunities. This will be done to enhance the operation mode of Resource Cycling Efficiency and to show the world the strength and technological prowess of Taiwan's resource cycling industry.

Raising Our Stake in ECOVE Solar Energy Corp. to 100%

ECOVE has been stabilizing its renewable resources position and maintains its confidence in the positive market prospects of solar power. In September 2018, we acquired a 50% equity stake in our subsidiary G.D. Development Corp., which is responsible for solar power system development investment. We thus currently hold a 100% equity stake in G.D. Development Corp. and have changed the Company's English name to ECOVE Solar Energy Corp. (ESEC) and added the ECOVE brand logo for the uniform brand identity.

When talking about the great performance of ESEC's projects, we can see that they are closely related to transportation and people’s livelihoods. When taking the High Speed Rail, they can see the Company’s solar power system project at Zuoying Station. When traveling abroad, people in the south can see ESEC’s excellent work upon their departures and arrivals at Kaohsiung International Airport. In the north, meanwhile, the Company’s solar power project at the Beitou Depot can be seen from the Taipei MRT line. ESEC even has a development investment project at the Taipei Water Department on Xinhai road.

Figure 1. Project simulation of Taipei MRT Beitou Depot power plant project After completion, it will become the first commercial solar green power plant in Taipei City with annual generation capacity of 4.3 million kWh. This will be able to supply electricity to 1,100 households for an entire year.

At the same time, ESEC is also putting its idle land to good use. This includes setting up green energy power generation facilities and continuously building the solar power systems at Tainan’s Chengxi and Xinying sanitary landfill sites. The Xinying sanitary landfill project has an estimated annual power generation capacity of 9.02 million kWh, which can supply 2,580 households with electricity for an entire year. This also sets a record for the largest scale of single-site power generation.

The projects are good examples of Resource Cycling Efficiency. In recognition of its stable performance and excellent engineering quality, ECOVE won the Top Solar Awards, a Special Award for the Kaohsiung Photoelectric Smart Building Certificate, and the Golden Boat Award in succession. Now that it has joined the ECOVE, ESEC will continue to improve its performance and engineering quality and establish a new model for green energy construction in Taiwan's large-scale power industry.

Creating a Circular Economy Business Model

The circular economy is a major trend worldwide. Governments of every country are constantly thinking about how to utilize new technologies to recycle resources, raw materials, and waste to reuse them in the industry chain.

Therefore, ECOVE Waste Management Corp.is also actively researching various recycling technologies that can transform waste into raw materials. In 2018, a newly established firm called ECOVE Solvent Recycling Corp., which can recycle the waste solvents with only 10% to 15% isopropyl alcohol and turn it into 99.5% isopropyl alcohol. This product can return to the market supply chain as industrial raw materials, thereby substantially reducing usage of petrochemical raw materials and global resources. Such actions are the specific purview of ECOVE in terms of performance improvement and the practice of corporate social responsibility.

In addition, ECOVE, CTCI and Evergreen Steel Corp. successfully fought for involvement in the Taoyuan City Biomass Center BOT Project. This case should be built and commissioned by CTCI and then  by operated by ECOVE. The power generation efficiency of the center will be higher than 24 existing EfW Plants in Taiwan, and its exhaust emissions will even be better than international standards. This will achieve the dual benefits of proper waste disposal along with power generation.

All Departments Cooperating Together to Create a New Atmosphere for ECOVE

Through our new-year talks, we aim to explain the position and future direction of ECOVE to every colleague. Beyond this, we hope to establish recognition and consensus regarding the culture of ECOVE. Here, we would also like to thank all the units and colleagues for your hard work that allows ECOVE to keep moving forward on the road toward a circular economy.

In addition to providing EfW Plants operations and comprehensive improvement services, the maintenance of electromechanical facilities at the station is also a primary function of ECOVE. Our colleagues at ECOVE work 365 days a year to engage in daily maintenance of facilities and extending service life. This allows transportation stations at the MRT, airports, and elsewhere run smoothly, and provides the public with safe and reliable public transit. With the basis of experience in maintaining traffic machine electric station facilities, at the end of 2017, ECOVE entered the field of wastewater treatment; in less than a year, it stood out among many wastewater treatment projects and won the first place in evaluations of excellent operations and maintenance performance. This also stands as an excellent example of our colleagues as they implement efficiency improvements in daily operations.

In 2017, colleagues at ECOVE took the initiative to establish a “Friendly Volunteer Group”  under the auspices of the Planning Department. This Group aims to bring environmental education out of the plants and carry workers and their families out to rural schools to teach environmental protection concepts such as "limited resources" and "there is only one Earth." In this way, the Group gradually promotes environmental education in schools, among families, and even in society in order to sustain our living environment.

In the application of Big Data and advanced technology, ECOVE has also seen outstanding performances and achievements among young, smart, and energetic colleagues led by the Technology Development Department.  

As our final line of defense, we would like to thank our colleagues of the Quality and Safety Department for providing more detailed planning and reminders for on-site operations. Meanwhile, the Human Resource and Administration Department is providing effective support and service with a spirit of stewardship.

Developing the ECOVE Brand and Winning National Awards

ECOVE has also achieved outstanding performances in the larger environmental policy and international environmental issues.

In recent years, ECOVE has urgently expanded its overseas presence and striven for cooperation opportunities in international business. Overseas market competition is fierce, however and the scale of competitors is different comparing with Taiwan’s. ECOVE faces strong competition from companies like Suez and Veilia, which are large international firms with annual turnover of more than 200 billion.

When moving overseas, we find that foreign owners also attach great importance to brand reputation and image when choosing service providers.In response, ECOVE started its brand revitalization project at the end of 2016. This called for unifying the brand recognition of each subsidiary, publishing the ECOVE brand, and challenging the global resource management industry's leading brands through a consistent vision and professionally clear brand content. We have also developed specific brands with specific effects. By actively participating in overseas forums and exhibitions, we have received positive reports in foreign media and obtained business development opportunities.

Aside from these positive international results, ECOVE was also awarded the Sustainable Enterprise Award of the Executive Yuan National Sustainable Development Awards. Announced at the end of 2018, this award commended ECOVE for its efforts in corporate operations, environmental conservation, and social participation. We led colleagues to care for local neighborhoods, thus promoting the sustainable development of national society. This proved that ECOVE is the most trustworthy resource cycling leader both at home and abroad.

Looking to the future, ECOVE will continue to focus on Resource Cycling Efficiency and smart data application by integrating advanced technologies, participating in nationwide and communitywide environmental issues discussions, and caring the community collaboration.  With current market trends and development, we hope to discover solutions, implement the concept of a circular economy, and become the most reliable provider of industry-leading resource cycling service.