A total of 122,000 solar panels have been installed at the Tengeh water reservoir. They should make it possible to produce the electricity needed for Singapore’s five water treatment plants.
The city is one of the largest greenhouse gas emitters in Asia, per capita. And the small amount of land available is a challenge for the implementation of renewable energy projects. Hence the solution to install power plants offshore or in your water tanks.
The floating solar power plant can generate up to 60 megawatts of electricity and will reduce carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to taking 7,000 cars off the road, according to Sembcorp Industries and Singapore’s water management agency PUB, the two partners in creating of this plant.
Singapore has also created solar farms in the Strait of Johor that separates Singapore from the Malaysian peninsula and others on land. The city-state, threatened by rising water levels due to climate change, is well aware of the urgency of reducing CO2 emissions, but observers find their efforts very timid.
The Singapore government released a “Green Plan” in February that plans to plant trees, reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills and increase the number of charging stations for electric cars.
It also plans to quadruple solar energy production, up to 2% of the country’s consumption in 2025, and 3% in 2030, which corresponds to the needs of 350,000 homes per year.
Despite its desire to become greener, the city-state will struggle to overcome its dependence on natural gas, which provides 95% of its electricity, and reduce its emissions without harming the refining and petrochemical sectors.
Solar park projects will not be enough if they are not accompanied by a greater commitment to reducing emissions, Red Constantino, executive director of the Philippines-based Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities, said in March.
Singapore has committed to halving its emissions level from 2030 by 2050 and reaching the zero emissions target “as soon as possible” thereafter. These targets lag behind those of other developed economies, and the Climate Action Tracker, an independent review body, called them “extremely insufficient.”