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In this Explainer, find out...
Why is Singapore pursuing a green energy transition?
How is Singapore adopting solar and hydrogen energy today?
What challenges may Singapore face in adopting solar and hydrogen energy?
Introduction
Sustainability and climate change are hot-button issues in today’s increasingly hot environment. As an island nation vulnerable to climate change, and as the country ranked 20th in the world in terms of CO2 emissions per capita, Singapore faces pressure to enhance its efforts in addressing climate change.¹
Released in 2021, the Singapore Green Plan 2030 outlines the targets Singapore aims to achieve to combat and mitigate the impacts of climate change.² One of the pillars of this plan is an “Energy Reset”. This pillar involves transitioning to cleaner energy sources across sectors like building and transport. Most significantly though, it focuses on decarbonising Singapore’s energy grid, also dubbed as the green energy transition.
This Policy Explainer will explore why and how Singapore is embarking on its green energy transition, and highlight some of the challenges Singapore may face along the way.
Singapore's Energy Landscape
Today, most of Singapore’s energy comes from the burning of fossil fuels, specifically natural gas and liquified natural gas (LNG). In 2023, 94.3 per cent of Singapore’s energy was generated by natural gas, while only 4.4 per cent of energy was generated by renewable sources like solar (see Figure 1).³
The 94.3 per cent figure is a far cry from Singapore’s goal of decreasing natural gas reliance to just over 50 per cent by 2035.⁵ It also means that Singapore has a lot to do before it can reach its target of net zero emissions by 2050.⁶
Yet, transitioning away from natural gas will be challenging. Among other reasons, this is due to the amount of existing energy infrastructure tailored towards the transportation and use of natural gas, which makes switching to renewable sources much more complicated and costly.
Renewable Energy in Singapore
Currently, two renewable sources have emerged as scalable green energy solutions for Singapore. These sources are solar energy and hydrogen energy.
Why Solar?
Situated near the equator, Singapore enjoys sunlight all year round. This makes solar energy a promising option for green energy. Furthermore, less land is needed to harness solar energy vis-à-vis other forms of green energy. Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, for instance, use up to 25 times less land than hydropower per megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity generated (see Figure 2).⁷ Solar PV panels can also be installed on rooftops, making them ideal given Singapore’s land constraints.
That being said, hotter weather does not always lead to more solar power. Instead, higher temperatures make solar PV panels less efficient. Thus, solar photovoltaic panels have to be installed on rooftops in a manner that ensures natural ventilation.⁸ Solar PV panels must also compete for rooftop space from other uses.⁹ These include water tanks, lift shafts, and air-conditioning systems. Hence, installing solar PV panels on rooftops is not as simple as one may presume.
Why Hydrogen?
Other than solar energy, Singapore is also pursuing hydrogen energy as an alternative.
There are several forms of hydrogen available today (see Figure 3). Currently, “grey” hydrogen is the most common. This refers to hydrogen created from natural gas through steam methane reformation, producing CO2 as a by-product.¹¹ “Blue” hydrogen or “green” hydrogen are less common due to barriers to technology adoption. Yet, they are more environmentally friendly since CO2 is either stored in the ground or not produced at all.¹²
Hydrogen energy is attractive not just because burning it does not produce CO2, but also due to the fact that it can be produced from natural gas — a resource that Singapore already imports in large quantities.
Additionally, it is energy-dense and does not suffer from the same intermittency problems that plague solar energy, potentially making it suitable to be used in industrial settings.¹⁴ In a country where 41.3 per cent of energy is used by the industrial sector, adopting a clean energy source that can meet the needs of that sector is critical.¹⁵
Green Energy Adoption in Singapore
Solar Energy
Singapore’s goal is to achieve 2 gigawatt-peak (GWp) of installed solar capacity by 2030. This is equivalent to meeting the annual electricity needs of around 350,000 households.¹⁶ There are two prongs to Singapore’s solar energy strategy: facilitating the deployment of PV systems and overcoming solar energy intermittency.
1. PV System Deployment
Firstly, Singapore seeks to attain a higher rate of PV panel installation. This requires creativity in tackling competing demands for land usage. On this front, Singapore has risen to the occasion by deploying PV panels in reservoirs, on rooftops, and at temporarily vacant plots of land.
Many government agencies are contributing to PV system deployment efforts in Singapore. One prominent project is the SolarNova Programme spearheaded by Singapore’s Housing & Development Board (HDB) and Economic Development Board (EDB), which involves the installation of solar PV panels on the roofs of HDB blocks.¹⁷ This has allowed HDB to commit a total solar capacity of 380-megawatt peak (MWp) as of 2022, which is enough to power 95,000 4-room HDB flats.¹⁸ It has also made HDB the largest driver for solar PV system installation in Singapore today.¹⁹
Notably, solar energy harnessed under the SolarNova programme is first used to power common services (such as lifts, water pumps and lights) in HDB estates.²⁰ Any excess energy generated is then channelled to the power grid. On average, this has allowed HDB blocks to achieve net-zero energy consumption in common areas.²¹
To complement the Government’s efforts, it is also possible for privately owned buildings, such as landed properties, to install their own PV systems.²² If excess energy is generated, the Energy Market Authority (EMA) also allows the sale of any excess solar-generated electricity to the grid.²³ This will help increase the total amount of electricity obtained via solar energy.
2. Overcoming Solar Energy Intermittency
Secondly, Singapore seeks to overcome solar energy intermittency. Inherently, solar energy is sporadic because it is subject to weather conditions; a cloudy day results in dramatically less energy being produced compared to a sunny day. As such, Singapore has taken means to increase the resilience of its solar grid.
The first of which involves the Solar Forecasting Model, which successfully completed a one-year trial in 2022. The model makes use of real-time irradiance data measured through sensors installed on rooftops and electrical substations across Singapore.²⁴ This data is then used alongside forecasting techniques such as machine learning algorithms. Finally, the output is combined with the weather prediction system of the Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) to produce 24-hour solar irradiance forecasts.²⁵
Separately, Singapore has launched a 285 MWh Energy Storage System (ESS) on Jurong Island, the largest ESS in Southeast Asia.²⁶ This allows Singapore to store energy to supply electricity in a future period. Uniquely, it was commissioned in six months, the fastest in the world of its size to be deployed.
Overall, Singapore is pursuing this two-pronged strategy to develop solar energy as a viable source of electricity.
Hydrogen Energy
In 2022, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) published a report on Singapore’s National Hydrogen Strategy. The report highlighted how energy produced from hydrogen could be a low-carbon energy source and constitute up to 50 per cent of Singapore’s green energy mix by 2050.²⁷
To this end, EMA has engaged several companies to build and run two hydrogen power plants that will ideally meet the energy needs of thousands of households by 2030.²⁸ As a start, these power plants will use hydrogen for 30 per cent of their fuel needs.
However, current systems to convert hydrogen into fuel are not sufficient to completely supplant natural gas. The most commercially viable form of hydrogen energy generators are Combined Cycle Gas Turbines which burn a combination of hydrogen fuel and natural gas, with hydrogen fuel making up between 30 to 50 per cent of the fuel by volume.²⁹ In other words, current hydrogen energy technology is still not a viable solution for meeting Singapore’s growing energy demands.
Hence, Singapore has invested heavily in R&D for hydrogen energy. Singapore has first done this through collaboration with the private sector. For example, French renewable energy company ENGIE Group has set up a research site on Semakau island to test various methods of renewable energy, including producing power from hydrogen fuel.³⁰
Local companies have also taken steps to explore hydrogen energy production. Keppel Infrastructure has established a partnership with Indian renewable energy company Greenko Group to explore how ammonia and the hydrogen in ammonia can be used to produce green energy.³¹ By partnering with an Indian company to manufacture green hydrogen in India, Singapore and its companies are also able to establish ties with green hydrogen fuel sources.
Singapore’s universities are also researching hydrogen energy technology. The NUS Green Energy Programme brings together experts across faculties to research emerging energy production methods.³² Some areas of research include hydrogen fuel production via electrolysis, capturing and converting CO2 into green fuels, and testing the feasibility of scaling these solutions.
Despite hydrogen energy technology still being early in its development, Singapore has endeavoured to get ahead of the curve and invest in solutions that will increase its capabilities to use hydrogen as a clean energy source.
Future Challenges
In the process of decarbonising Singapore’s electricity grid, the country will inevitably face several issues.
Solar Energy: Lessons from Hawaii
To identify possible challenges that Singapore might face while adopting solar energy, we turn to Hawaii’s incentive system to encourage the deployment of solar PV panels.
Oahu, a similarly small island in Hawaii, adopted the Net Energy Metering (NEM) policy back in 2001. This policy allows households who have installed PV systems to offset the cost of their total electricity bill by receiving compensation for the excess electricity they generate in the form of tax credits.³³ This tax credit system was initially touted as effective by scholars since Oahu now has over 47,000 PV systems installed in total.³⁴
However, a few concerns soon emerged, serving as lessons Singapore can learn from. After the tax credit system was phased out in 2015 and less-enticing tax structures were introduced, the island’s solar energy market has stagnated.³⁵ If Singapore were to similarly motivate private landowners to install PV systems with financial incentives, she would have to sustain these incentives for the long-term health and stability of the energy market. Yet, doing so may not be fiscally sustainable for the Government.
Further, deploying such a tax credit system could lead to rising inequality in Singapore, as was the case in Oahu.³⁶ Private property owners can invest in their own private PV systems, unlike HDB homeowners, thus providing a better defence against rising non-renewable energy costs and overall electricity bills.
Finally, Oahu struggled with solar energy intermittency.³⁷ At peak sunlight, the grid would become excessively saturated with electricity, while available energy drastically decreased at night. This highlights a key lesson for Singapore — increased deployment of solar PV panels (the first arm of Singapore’s strategy) has to be matched with a growing storage capacity (a component of the second arm of Singapore’s strategy).
Hydrogen Energy: Supply Chain Issues
The technology that would enable large-scale adoption of hydrogen energy is still early in its development. As such, Singapore is likely to face issues in hydrogen energy adoption in the near future.
One of the greatest challenges that energy companies face is that hydrogen is extremely difficult to store and transport. Transporters either have to liquefy hydrogen or convert hydrogen into ammonia to transport it. Currently, transporting ammonia is the more commonly adopted method, but it is expensive and time-consuming.³⁸
Singapore with its limited resources would have to import hydrogen and would be subject to the currents of the global supply chain. For hydrogen to become a more logistically viable option, Singapore must first adapt and find more efficient ways to transport hydrogen.
Yet, this problem may be partially mitigated for Singapore. As shown in Figure 4, Singapore’s neighbour, Malaysia, is expected to be a net exporter of hydrogen. On top of that, Singaporean companies have also expressed a desire to pipe hydrogen from Malaysia and Indonesia to Singapore for energy production.³⁹ Thus, Singapore may not have to transport energy over a long distance, making it less susceptible to supply chain issues.
Conclusion
Singapore's journey towards a more sustainable energy future is clearly and ambitiously outlined in the Singapore Green Plan 2030. While the goals might seem lofty, they are necessary stepping stones to combat the island’s vulnerability to climate change and its current carbon footprint. Solar energy — supported by innovative deployment strategies and energy storage solutions — presents a viable path forward. However, the intermittency of solar power and the lessons from other small island states highlight the need for careful planning and sustained investment.
Hydrogen energy also holds exciting potential for decarbonising Singapore’s energy mix. However, it is still in its nascent stages of development. The logistical challenges of hydrogen storage and transportation, coupled with the current limitations of technology, underscore the need for continued research and international collaboration.
As Singapore advances towards its 2050 net-zero emissions target, it must navigate these challenges with foresight and resilience. The nation's efforts to diversify its energy sources, invest in cutting-edge technology, and collaborate with both the private sector and international partners will be critical in ensuring a sustainable and secure energy future. Despite the hurdles, Singapore's proactive approach positions it as a leader in the global fight against climate change, setting an example for other nations to follow.
This Policy Explainer was written by members of MAJU. MAJU is an independent, youth-led organisation that focuses on engaging Singaporean youths in a long-term research process to guide them in jointly formulating policy ideas of their own.
By sharing our unique youth perspectives, MAJU hopes to contribute to the policymaking discourse and future of Singapore.
The citations to our Policy Explainers can be found in the PDF appended to this webpage.
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