Singapore’s Minister of Trade and Industry, Gan Kim Yong, stated that the country is considering several options to decarbonise its power grid, including boosting solar power and importing low-carbon energy from the region. Mr Gan spoke at the inaugural Singapore Green Plan Conversation hosted by the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
Mr Gan also stated that the country intends to use regional electricity systems. The Lao People’s Democratic Republic-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Integration Project has also begun, with cross-border power trading of up to 100MW between the four nations participating.
Over the last five years, Singapore’s solar energy capacity has increased by more than sixfold. By 2030, the goal is to increase solar energy deployment by fivefold to at least two gigawatts, which would power roughly 350,000 homes annually.
“We are embarking on a trial with Malaysia to import up to 100MW of electricity. This trial will allow us to build up our knowledge on larger-scale low-carbon imports from the region,” he added. “For us, climate change is an existential challenge.”
Singapore is a small city-state – without natural resources, land, nor climatic conditions for large-scale deployment of renewable energy sources. We, therefore, take sustainable development very seriously.
– Gan Kim Yong, Singapore’s Minister of Trade and Industry
The Singapore Green Plan 2030 was unveiled earlier this year as a plan for the country’s carbon reduction efforts. City in Nature, Sustainable Living, Energy Reset, Green Economy, and Resilient Future are the five pillars of the strategy. Ministers of state for trade and industry Low Yen Ling and Alvin Tan also attended the Singapore Green Plan Conversation, which intended to engage businesses and representatives from trade sectors.
The minister went on to say that the green economy will open up new doors for Singapore. “Singapore has the potential to become a carbon services centre. Companies will demand competence to control their carbon footprint as the world moves toward a low-carbon future. We aim to work with regional stakeholders to help them achieve their decarbonisation goals “he remarked. In addition, companies and employees are also urged to improve their competencies and seize new chances.
OpenGov Asia reported that per a joint press release from two countries, Singapore will join Australia in drafting a Green Economy Agreement (GEA). The cooperation intends to hasten both countries’ transition to a greener, more sustainable future, while also creating jobs and reducing carbon emissions. The agreement will highlight initiatives to encourage and ease trade and investment, with an emphasis on reducing regulatory burdens on businesses. It also aims to eliminate non-tariff obstacles to trade in environmental goods and services and to speed up the adoption of low-emission green technology.
The countries claimed this “world-first agreement” will deepen their bilateral connection through strengthened economic and environmental relations in a joint vision statement released following the conference. The agreement’s larger goal is to serve as a guide for multilateral and regional policy development by establishing policies, standards, and initiatives that will not only create good jobs in green growth sectors but also strengthen environmental governance and global capacity to deal with environmental issues.
Singapore and Australia already have an open, liberalised trade and investment relationship and are both prominent proponents of a global trading system based on open norms. Singapore is also collaborating with Australia on a solar power project that would provide green energy to Singapore via a 4,200-kilometre underwater cable from Darwin, Australia.
Moreover, the Singapore government is following up on the results of two feasibility studies, one on low-carbon hydrogen and the other on carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) technology. As a developing country with limited access to alternative energy, these technologies are likely to play an essential part in the country’s transition to a low-carbon future.
Finally, the CCUS technology will assist the government in meeting its climate action obligations and goals, as outlined in the upgraded 2030 Nationally Determined Contribution and Long-Term Low-Emissions Development Strategy, as well as the Singapore Green Plan 2030.
