Singapore is aiming to diversify its future energy mix, which will comprise domestic sources as well as imports, Singapore's minister-in-charge of energy Tan See Leng said at the Singapore International Energy Week conference today.
Singapore, which currently relies almost entirely imported natural gas to meet its power needs, sees solar as the most viable renewable energy option but is also considering nuclear power and geothermal, Tan said.
The push to diversify comes as electricity use in southeast Asia is expected to increase sharply in the coming years, given growth in demand for cooling as temperatures rise, the proliferation of electric vehicles and the addition of data centres to support artificial intelligence.
Singapore's total installed power capacity is likely to reach at least 2GW peak (GWp) before 2030, up from more than 1.7 GWp currently, according to government estimates.
But land constraints will limit solar's contribution to meeting Singapore's electricity demand. Solar will be able to supply at most 10pc of the country's total projected electricity demand by 2050, Tan said.
Singapore is exploring other renewable options as a result. The country is deepening co-operation with the US to studying the feasibility of nuclear power. Industry regulator the Energy Market Authority (EMA) signed initial agreements with US science and technology organisation Battelle Memorial Institute and US advanced nuclear energy laboratory Idaho National Laboratory on 27 October, as part of moves to build Singapore's capabilities to study nuclear energy.
The government also started a nationwide study in 2024 to ascertain how much geothermal energy Singapore will be able to use.
Natural gas currently makes up about 95pc of Singapore's energy mix. The fuel is imported by pipeline from Indonesia and as LNG to the country's 11mn t/yr Singapore LNG receiving terminal. The government aims to import 6GW of low-carbon electricity by 2035.
Decarbonisation goals
Singapore is aiming to cut carbon emissions from its power sector and decarbonise its electricity system, and has pledged to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
The country will set up a "regulatory sandbox" — a controlled environment for companies to test commercial viability — of up to 300MW to speed up the development of the biomethane supply chain and to help industry players adopt the low-carbon fuel, the government said.
The EMA also said it will award up to S$44mn ($34mn) to Singaporean firms Keppel and Sembcorp, which operate the country's first two advanced combined cycle gas turbines (CCGTs), to support the deployment of the plants.
The advanced CCGTs are expected to be deployed by the end of 2026 and will cut carbon emissions by at least 200,000 t/yr, compared with current CCGTs in the current power system.
Singapore also plans to build a low-carbon data centre park on Jurong Island with a capacity of up to 700MW, the government announced today.
