POWERING A SUSTAINABLE SINGAPORE

Noraidah A Rahim (Curriculum Planning Officer, CPDD Geography Unit)

Olivia Tan (Curriculum Resource Development Officer, CPDD Geography Unit)

In this issue, we speak to Mr Dave Lew, a Principal Analyst with Corporate Planning in the Energy Market Authority (EMA) Singapore.

He shares how Singapore is striking a balance between working towards a sustainable future and meeting the nation's rising energy demands. He also outlined some opportunities for Geography teachers to play an important role in shaping generations of environmental stewards.

#1: What would be the most crucial policy/policies taken by EMA in meeting the needs of energy in Singapore?

EMA’s main goals are to ensure a reliable and secure energy supply, promote effective competition in the energy market, and develop a dynamic energy sector in Singapore. Since it was set up in 2001, EMA has guided the transition of the Singapore’s energy sector, supporting Singapore’s economic growth and improving our standard of living.

On the sustainability front, a significant move was made in the early 2000s to shift from using fuel oil to the cleaner natural gas, for power generation. This allowed Singapore to reduce our emissions, while keeping energy costs affordable. To further strengthen our energy security, EMA broke new ground with Singapore’s first liquefied natural gas terminal in 2013 to gain access to natural gas from all over the world, in addition to piped natural gas from neighbouring countries.

Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal at Jurong Island
(Photo courtesy of SLNG Corporation)

Today, climate change is a pressing global challenge and Singapore has pledged climate action commitments on its part. The power sector has a key part to play here as it contributes to about 40% of Singapore’s emissions. In 2019, the Ministry of Trade and Industry and EMA announced the Singapore’s Energy Story, which is about harnessing the four switches of natural gas, solar, regional power grids, and low-carbon alternatives to transform our energy supply, while promoting energy efficiency to reduce demand. We need to work hand-in-hand with our workforce, researchers, industries, and consumers to co-create our Energy Story towards greater sustainability for the decades ahead.

#2: What are some of EMA’s concerns when we think of a sustainable Singapore?

Balancing the energy trilemma is probably what keeps the team at EMA up at night. We need to balance the trade-offs between three important factors – environmental sustainability, energy security, and affordability.

The best case scenario for any country is to have free access to boundless amounts of clean energy. However, the reality is that Singapore is alternative energy-disadvantaged due to its geographical constraints. Therefore, our range of options to deliver sustainable, secure, and affordable energy to Singaporeans are limited.

Solar panels on top of HDB flats in Singapore
(Photo courtesy of Energy Market Authority)

Take solar for example. Solar is currently our most viable renewable energy source, but there are limitations to the amount of solar energy we can harness due to Singapore’s limited land area. Even as we maximise solar deployment in Singapore, we need to ensure the power grid remains reliable by managing the intermittent nature of solar due to changing weather conditions, such as through the use of energy storage systems and solar forecasting tools. Yet at the same time, these grid enhancements need to be done in a cost-effective manner.

Another concern is the increasing importance of demand-side measures. As alluded above, it is challenging to balance the energy trilemma based on supply-side measures alone, especially when low-carbon supply alternatives have not become technically and economically viable. Energy demand is projected to grow with increased digitalisation and electrification in other key sectors. The approach of continuously expanding supply and grid capacity to keep up with demand growth can become inefficient and costly. Efforts in energy efficiency and conservation will therefore be key to support the energy transition, as the reduction of electricity demand provides a longer runway for us to deploy our supply-side options. Ultimately, we need to make moves that are not just sustainable, but also secure and affordable for Singapore.

#3: What are some new initiatives by EMA that are in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy)?

To overcome our land constraints, Singapore is tapping on regional power grids to access low-carbon electricity overseas. Regional power grids can help accelerate the development of renewable energy projects, bringing economic growth and increasing access to renewable energy across the region. Electricity imports will also help us diversify our energy sources away from natural gas and improve our energy resilience. Singapore is planning to import up to 4 gigawatts of low-carbon electricity by 2035, which is expected to make up around 30% of Singapore’s electricity supply then.

Beyond regional power grids, Singapore is exploring emerging low-carbon technologies that can help reduce Singapore's carbon footprint in the longer term. These include hydrogen, carbon capture, utilisation, and storage, and geothermal energy. While such technologies are currently nascent, EMA is taking active steps, including investing in research and development (R&D) through the Low-Carbon Energy Research Funding Initiative, to improve the technical and economic viability of implementing these low-carbon technologies in Singapore.

#4: How do you think Geography teachers can play an important role in inspiring our students to be more sustainable?

We must have the conviction and be ready to increase awareness that Singaporeans have a key part to play in our transition towards a more sustainable energy future. Geography teachers can do that through the sharing of Our Energy Story, Singapore’s unique challenges, and efforts to advance Singapore’s energy transition. This can help students better appreciate the broad planning principles, such as the considerations behind the energy trilemma.

EMA could support teachers through the provision of resources, planning of events created through initiative and collaboration with its stakeholders and partners and training of youth advocates.

Geography teachers are welcome to use our general materials (click here) to cultivate sustainability behaviours among the students and encourage a spirit of innovation to develop new energy solutions for Singapore and the world. On top of that, EMA has also collaborated with MOE to develop educational resources showcasing energy concepts aligned with secondary school and pre-university science and humanities curricula (click here for an SLS lesson on Singapore's Energy Landscapes). During the MOE's 2021 Geography Symposium, EMA participated by putting up an exhibition and conducting a workshop - you may view the recorded session of our presentation here.

Teachers could also bring their students to learning journeys to the Energy Story Exhibition at the Singapore Science Centre, which was jointly launched by EMA and its partners. The exhibition aims to raise public awareness of Singapore’s journey in overcoming our energy challenges, our move towards energy sustainability, and the importance of energy conservation.

You could also look out for our enrollment of student energy ambassadors. We are proud to share that at the recent Singapore International Energy Week 2021, we have welcomed our second batch of ambassadors who have been active youth advocates on energy-related issues.

Finally, we believe that Singapore should approach the energy transition with hope and optimism. Climate action is a global movement that will bring about economic opportunities. We call upon educators to inspire the youth to look forward to new and exciting learning and career opportunities in this burgeoning green power economy!

The Energy Story Exhibition at Science Centre Singapore
(Photos courtesy of Science Centre Singapore)

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