Singapore Raises Its Clean Power Import Target as Demand Soars

Singapore will seek to import around 6 gigawatts (GW) of low-carbon electricity by 2035, up from an initial target of 4 GW, the Energy Market Authority (EMA) said on Thursday, as the country looks to decarbonize its power sector amid growing demand.

“Low-carbon electricity imports are part of Singapore’s overall efforts to decarbonise the power sector, which currently accounts for about 40% of the nation’s carbon emissions,” EMA said in a media release announcing conditional licenses and approvals for more imports of clean electricity from Indonesia.

“Given the encouraging progress of electricity imports projects, and to ensure adequate supply to meet our future energy needs given growing demand, Singapore will raise its ambition and seek to import 6 GW by 2035,” the authority said.

While it looks to import clean electricity, Singapore is also seeking proposals from companies to build and operate two new natural gas-fired power plants by the end of the decade as it looks to have more generation capacity to meet soaring electricity demand.

In June, EMA launched a second Request for Proposal for new electricity generation capacity, inviting companies to build, own, and operate two new hydrogen-ready Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) generating units to be ready in 2029 and 2030 respectively.

The authority’s proposal comes on the heels of data that Singapore’s electricity demand has been steadily increasing over the years, driven largely by electricity-intensive sectors such as the advanced manufacturing, digital economy, and transport sectors.

Based on EMA’s projections, Singapore’s power system peak demand is expected to grow by at least 3.7% over the next six years, reaching between 10.1 gigawatts (GW) and 11.8 GW by 2030.

“As Singapore’s electricity demand continues to grow, it is crucial that we ensure we have sufficient generation capacity to power our homes, workplaces, and communities,” Ngiam Shih Chun, Chief Executive of EMA, said in June.

By Tsvetana Paraskova

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