Taiwan does not have substantial domestic energy resources and must import the vast majority of its needs. Taiwan has encouraged investment in domestic oil and natural gas projects in light of a need to obtain a secure supply, including partnerships with mainland Chinese companies and overseas ventures. However, these efforts are unlikely to yield sufficient energy resources to reverse the island’s energy import dependence.

Nearly half of total energy consumption in Taiwan is from oil (45 percent), followed by coal (36 percent), although Taiwan no longer has any domestic coal production. Since the introduction of LNG imports in the 1990s, natural gas has played an increasingly important role in the island’s energy mix, accounting for 9 percent of total energy consumption in 2005.