Taipower Spends NT$960,000 to Modify Logo Font; Controversy Over Erasure of Historical Legacy

In early May 2026, Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) was exposed for spending approximately NT$960,000 to commission designer Nieh Yung-chen to modify its official logo font. The original font was widely believed to be the calligraphy of the legendary master Yu You-ren. This move sparked intense public backlash, with critics and historians questioning the necessity of spending such a large sum to alter a culturally significant artifact, labeling it an act of "de-Sinicization." Taipower clarified that the current font was actually an imitation created in the 1990s, not Yu's original work. However, scholars argued that the historical fact of Yu's contribution should not be dismissed to justify the change. The expenditure was seen as especially tone-deaf given Taipower's massive financial losses exceeding NT$400 billion, electricity shortages, and rising tariffs. Consequently, Taipower Chairman Tseng Wen-sheng was formally sued at the district prosecutor's office by Taipei City Councilor Yang Chih-tou and others for breach of trust and profit-seeking under the Criminal Code, pushing faction-dominated state-owned enterprises into the judicial spotlight.