Taiwan’s Executive Yuan announced recently plans to phase out the nation’s 692,000 mercury-vapor lamps with LEDs in the next two years, according to a recent Taipei Times report.

The country might become the first nation to phase out mercury-bapor streetlights, which is expected to save lighting energy bills by NT$1.1 billion (US$35.8 million), NT$7.2 billion in local government expenditure, and NT$ 346 million in maintenance costs within five years.

Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) has approved the project, pledging a NT$5.49 billion budget to replace all streetlamps with LEDs.

The project started in 2012, and has been succeeded by many other projects to promote LED bulbs in recent years, said Executive Yuan spokesman Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群)

As of 2013, Taiwan has upgraded 284,000 light bulbs to LEDs, which cut carbon dioxide emissions by 120,000 tonnes, added Sun.