Singapore looks to its neighbours to import low-carbon energy, but obstacles remain
Singapore has begun low-carbon electricity imports from Malaysia – but regional cooperation and cost-sharing are still an issue
As a land scarce city state with few natural resources, Singapore has limited renewable energy potential and has been actively trying to import more renewable energy from its larger neighbours.
Seng Wai Lee, director at the Energy Connections Office in the Energy Market Authority, told This Week in Asia that low-carbon electricity imports are essential to Singapore’s overall strategy to decarbonise the power sector.
The authority aims to import around 6 gigawatts of low-carbon electricity by 2035, which will account for about one-third of Singapore’s energy supply by then, Lee noted.
As part of this effort, Sembcorp Power started importing 50 megawatts of renewable electricity from Malaysia’s Tenaga Nasional Berhad this month, Lee said.
“This electricity will be sourced from Malaysia’s grid, drawn from existing solar and hydropower plants or other renewable sources approved by Malaysia’s Energy Commission.” he said, adding that the countries are exploring increasing this import towards 300MW.
