On Energy Labelling:

A clear benefit to consumers and businesses is the cost-savings from energy and water consumption over time. To help households make informed choices, I am glad to announce that the Singapore Government will be extending water and energy efficiency labelling to more appliances and explore more mandatory efficiency standards for them.

Our current Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme (MELS) and Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) have been effective in expanding the range of higher efficiency appliances in the market. And with more coming in to the market, we hope to bring prices down and make them more affordable to households.

Households who have switched to these appliances are enjoying savings in their electricity bills. Under MELS for household appliances, suppliers are required to provide information on the energy requirements of their products which allows consumers to compare the energy efficiency performance and life-cycle costs of different models. This is to allow them to make better informed purchasing decisions. MEPS on the other hand, helps in removing the most inefficient models from our market, by prohibiting the sale of all appliance models that do not meet the minimum specified energy efficiency levels.

To further aid our consumers, MELS will be expanded to include televisions from 2014, while the National Environment Agency will also tighten MEPS standards for air conditioners and refrigerators in September 2013, and introduce standards for clothes dryers and general lighting in 2014.

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On Energy and Climate Change:

We will continue to work with companies, incentivise them and provide schemes such as the Grant for Energy Efficient Technologies (GREET) as well as extending the Singapore Certified Energy Manager training grant. All those will enhance capability and technology.

The Mandatory Energy Labelling Scheme (MELS) and the Minimum Energy Performance Standards (MEPS) have been very effective in expanding the range of higher energy-efficient appliances on the market and making them more affordable. Quite frankly, people will save money in the medium to long run if they buy more energy-efficient appliances, whether it is air- conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines and the like. We also need to encourage people to look beyond the initial sticker price to the total cost of ownership.

You ask whether we are worried about rising sea levels. Yes, we are. We are anticipating that it could go up by anywhere between 60cm to a metre, and beyond. And that is why last year, we changed our platform levels for all reclaimed land – we added another metre. So all reclaimed land now will be at least 2.25 metres above the highest-recorded sea level. This is buying insurance for the future. If it does not happen, treat it as a sandbag. If it does happen, we will prepare, and we have to prepare to adapt faster, and be aware of what is going on in science.

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Singapore is on track to meeting its unconditional pledge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 7 to 11 per cent below 2020 levels.

Second Minister for Trade and Industry S Iswaran said there are measures in place to reduce the carbon footprint of Singapore’s industries.

They include tax incentives and third-party financing schemes which encourage private financing of energy-efficient projects.

Mr Iswaran was reply to a question by Non-Constituency MP Lina Chiam in Parliament on Wednesday.

Mrs Chiam had asked why is the coal-burning Tembusu Multi-Utilities Complex (TMUC) on Jurong Island allowed to operate considering that coal is one of the most polluting source of energy and whether Singapore has met its international obligations to reduce its carbon emissions.

Mr Iswaran explained that while the use of fuel oil and natural gas are less polluting energy options used by industries, the Tembusu Multi-Utilities Complex located on Jurong Island uses a mix of clean coal and biomass to produce steam and electricity for chemical companies.

Click here to read the full article.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan announced that the government will be enhancing standards to improve air quality in Singapore.

The government will impose Euro V emissions standards for new diesel vehicles starting from 1 January next year.

Currently, there are around 3,400 Euro V-compliant diesel vehicles on the roads.

Dr Balakrishnan said in Parliament more needs to be done as existing old diesel vehicles are a major source of pollution.

To incentivise the owners of old diesel commercial vehicles to retire and upgrade their old vehicles, a new Early Turnover Scheme will be implemented.

More details will be provided in the next two months.

The emissions standard for all new motorcycles will also be raised from 1 October 2014.

Click here to read the full article.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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The International Energy Agency (IEA) says the emergence of a trading hub for liquefied natural gas (LNG) could significantly lower price and that would help companies that use it as a source of power.

And Singapore may soon be able to add another spoke to its “hub” status.

The IEA says Singapore is the most natural location to be the regional LNG hub.

Already an important centre for global oil trading, the Republic is being eyed as the next hub for LNG.

Stiff supply contacts presently keep the price of LNG higher than it needs to be.

Current LNG prices are kept artificially high by rigid long-term contracts, or oil price indexation.

For example, the IEA reports that Japan’s import bill for LNG is US$10 billion higher than what it could be in a properly efficient LNG market.

Experts say less regulation and a freer market approach would foster competition and potentially lower prices, which would make the use of LNG in Asia more sustainable in the long term.

According to the IEA, gas consumption in Asia Pacific will outstrip demand by 2017.

Read the full article here.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) will partner Singapore companies for this year’s Earth Hour to encourage Singaporeans to make four lifestyle changes in support of the environment.

The lifestyle changes are to reduce the use of plastic bags, turn up their air-conditioning by one degree, switch to energy-efficient LED lights, and take short showers.

Corporate partners IKEA, Philips Lighting and Marina Bay Sands have issued challenges to the Singapore public through the Earth Hour “I Will If You Will” platform for three key actions.

Home furnishing retailer IKEA has pledged to have a free reusable Blue Bag Day if 20,000 people in Singapore pledge to use reusable bags instead of plastic bags.

Click here to read the full article.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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By Channel NewsAsia, 24 Jan 2013.

Another 80 HDB residential blocks in Punggol Eco-Town will be solar powered.

The Housing and Development Board (HDB) has awarded a tender to lease three mega-watt-peak solar photovoltaic (PV) systems for the blocks.

The tender attracted keen competition from the industry, with a total of 13 bidders, compared to the first Solar Leasing project in 2011 which only garnered three bids.

Under the tender, solar system developer Sunseap will design, finance, install, operate and maintain the solar PV systems.

Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council will have a service agreement with Sunseap to pay for the solar power generated and used, at a preferential rate of up to 5 per cent discount off the retail electricity tariff rate.

Installation works are scheduled to be completed by 2014.

HDB is currently the largest stakeholder in the installation of solar PV system in Singapore.

To date, HDB has committed a total of S$15 million for the installation of solar PV systems for 175 blocks of flats. This is equivalent to powering the energy needs of 1,800 4-room flats for a year.

With the second solar leasing project, HDB has moved a step closer to the aim of developing Punggol Eco-Town as a net zero energy town by 2016.

Click here to read the full article.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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The new Carbon Emissions-based Vehicle Scheme (CEVS) will apply to all new cars, taxis and newly imported used cars registered with effect from 1 January 2013.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said car buyers are advised to look out for the mandatory Fuel Economy Labelling Scheme (FELS) labels with the LTA’s logo at car showrooms.

The label is required to be put on cars that have been LTA-approved.

The label provides the carbon emissions and fuel efficiency performance of the car model to help buyers make informed decisions.

Only cars that are approved by LTA under FELS can be registered for use from 1 January and low emission models will qualify for CEVS rebates.

Buyers can also access the FELS online database and fuel cost calculator at the ONEMOTORING website to compare the carbon emissions and fuel efficiency performance data across car models that are LTA approved.

Under the new scheme, registered cars with low carbon emissions of less than or equal to 160g carbon emissions per kilometre (CO2/km) will qualify for rebates of between S$5,000 and S$20,000.

This will be given as an offset against the vehicle’s Additional Registration Fee.

Cars with high carbon emissions equal to or more than 211g CO2/km, will incur a registration surcharge between S$5,000 and S$20,000.

The surcharges will only take effect six months later, from 1 July 2013 to give consumers and the motor industry more time to adjust.

The CEVS will be applicable till 31 December 2014.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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Singapore will be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) by the second quarter of next year, to diversify energy sources, when Singapore’s S$1.7 billion terminal is ready to begin operations.

Currently, 80 per cent of Singapore’s electricity is generated from piped gas by Malaysia and Indonesia.

The first tranche of LNG is expected to arrive at its new terminal in Jurong Island in the second quarter of next year.

S Iswaran, second minister for trade and industry said: “We are always trying to strike a balance between three key considerations. One is energy supply resilience, second is in terms of our economic competitiveness and third is environmental sustainability. These are the key elements that we want to point together and achieve an equilibrium in, and is part of our energy strategy for Singapore.

“In that context, diversification is key to our competitiveness, resilience and sustainability because we really need to have as many options as possible available to Singapore that we can tap into to feed and meet our current and future energy requirements.”

But experts are not upbeat that this will bring energy costs down overnight.

LNG prices will continue to be pegged to oil prices, which remain high.

This may be frustrating news for companies like Lanxess and Shell Chemicals, which in recent months have said that high energy costs have hurt “manufacturing economics and customers”.

Gas prices in Singapore are also double that in Malaysia and Vietnam.

For now, the government said businesses can negotiate with power generating companies for contracts appropriate to their business, and practicing energy efficiency can also help.

Mr Iswaran said: “I think it is important for our businesses and indeed for our households to take energy efficiency seriously. In other words, invest in energy efficiency, invest in some of the upfront infrastructure, or upfront capital costs in order to have a sustained reduction in energy consumption and energy cost. This is is something that needs to be actively pursued by businesses as well. If you can do that right, that will be durable savings for businesses, regardless of what the price of energy is in Singapore.”

He added: “If you think about it differently, if you can achieve a 10 per cent saving in Singapore’s energy consumption, that is the equivalent of one plant. Our peak capacity and consumption is about 6 gigawatts. So if we save 10 per cent, that’s 600 megawatts, which is basically the size about a plant these days that is being developed.”

Experts also say there may be room for more competitive LNG pricing with more players in the market.

Currrently, only one company – BG Group – is responsible for sourcing and delivering LNG in Singapore.

BG Group is currently contracted to supply up to three million tonnes of LNG per annum to Singapore.

Ravi Krishnaswamy, the vice president of energy and power systems at Frost & Sullivan said: “What that could mean is that once you have more players in the domestic market supplying LNG, there is a possibility that this can provide a more competitively-priced gas, but then again this will only happen over the next couple of years, I would say.”

Singapore will receive its first LNG shipment from Qatar, and may subsequently receive from markets such as Russia, Australia and the US.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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Singapore has welcomed a decision to extend the life of the Kyoto Protocol, the only UN plan that obliges developed nations to cut carbon emissions. Its first commitment period expires by the end of the year.

“Singapore welcomes the decision to adopt an 8-year Second Commitment Period (2CP) following the end of the first Commitment Period of the Kyoto Protocol (KP) at the end of 2012,” said a statement by the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) on Sunday.

“The 2CP includes a commitment to review future increases in emissions reduction targets, for developed countries participating in the 2CP. This continues the good foundation of a multilateral rules-based system laid down by the KP, and signifies the continued willingness of such countries to take the lead in global mitigation efforts,” added the statement.

The 2CP was reached at the end of the United Nations climate change conference which was held from November 26 to December 8 in Doha, Qatar.

The conference president Abdullah bin Hamad al-Atiiyah of Qatar said the agreement on the Kyoto Protocol would apply from 2013 till 2020.

Source: Channel NewsAsia

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