New solar energy research institute to conduct world-class R&D

Channel NewsAsia 21 Jan 08;

SINGAPORE: Singapore has set up a National Research Institute on Solar Energy, in line with its push to be a leading player in the clean energy sector.

Singapore hopes to be one of the front-runners in solar energy research in Asia, as the global solar market is poised to more than triple to over US$100 billion by 2011.

The institute was jointly established by the Economic Development Board (EDB) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) at an investment cost of S$130 million over five years.

The institute will start operations in April and it will be headed by Professor Joachim Luther, a leading expert in solar energy applications and technology.

Professor Luther is a former director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems - Europe's largest solar energy R&D institute - and Professor of Physics at the University of Freiburg in Germany.

He will head the Singapore institute on a two-year tenure. The institute will start with a staff of 25 researchers, but the number is expected to grow to 90 by 2012.

The institute will also provide opportunities for graduate students to participate in research projects. It plans to produce up to 50 PhD and 20 Masters students by 2012.

The institute will conduct research in the production of silicon-based solar cells and aims to create more effective photovoltaic devices that can convert light into electricity.

It will work with the construction industry to develop energy-efficient buildings, such as having window panes to trap light for energy and solar-assisted air conditioning. - CNA/ir

Solar research institute launched at NUS
Matthew Phan, Business Times 22 Feb 08;

THE Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (Seris) was launched yesterday - a move government officials say fills a critical gap in the clean-energy eco-system here.

To be headed by a former director of Germany's Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems - the leading institution of its kind in one of the world's largest solar markets - Seris will receive $130 million of funding over the next five years.

While this is less than the Fraunhofer's annual 60 million euro (S$124.7 million) budget, it is 'quite reasonable', said Seris CEO Joachim Luther, who has a PhD in atomic physics but veered into renewable energy research in 1980.

'I sit on several advisory boards and give advice,' Prof Luther said. 'But what I like is to really move things. And for that you need a piano to play on.'

Prof Luther, 67, retired two years ago from the directorship of the Fraunhofer Institute, a post he held for 13 years. After hearing he was available, the Economic Development Board (EDB) approached him in July last year. 'We were very eager to have him choose us,' said EDB managing director Ko Kheng Hua. 'The lack of a research institute was a gap. Now with Seris, we've finally got it plugged.'

Seris, which it is hoped will be operational by April, will have 25 researchers at first, with the number expected to grow to 90 people in five years.

It will focus on three areas of research:

(i) driving down the cost of making silicon-based solar cells and reducing the amount of silicon used;

(ii) developing new materials to convert solar energy, such as by using nanotechnology; and

(iii) integrating solar power devices into buildings, such as smart windows, solar-assisted airconditioning or solar energy storage devices.

The new institute will be part of the National University of Singapore (NUS), a connection Prof Luther said is essential. Advances in solar energy are driven strongly by basic advances in the physical sciences, so it is vital that researchers across disciplines, like materials science or process engineering, share ideas.

One idea, for example, is to embed wax seals in walls. Wax can be engineered to melt at 25° Celsius, which means that as temperatures rise beyond that level, the melting wax - which stays at 25° Celsius until completely melted - stabilises the building's temperature at that level. The method has been successfully used to avoid airconditioning during German summers, said Prof Luther.

But even with Seris up and running, Singapore looks unlikely to move beyond research grants to offer fiscal incentives for mass adoption of solar cells. 'We want to create lead-users first. When we see results, then we will move to the next step,' said EDB's Mr Ko.

Singapore sets up R&D centre for solar energy
With $130m budget over 5 years, it aims to be top research centre in Asia
Jessica Cheam, Straits Times 22 Feb 08;

HARNESSING the sun's heat to cool a building might seem counter-intuitive.

But innovative ideas such as this are exactly what Singapore's newly established solar research institute hopes to turn into reality.

A new research and development (R&D) centre to cement Singapore's position as a serious solar energy player was unveiled yesterday.

It was set up by the National University of Singapore (NUS) and the multi-agency Clean Energy Programme Office, managed by the Economic Development Board (EDB).

The Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore, or Seris, will get $130 million to spend over the next five years and aims to be a leading solar R&D centre in Asia, said EDB yesterday.

The centre has scored a coup by attracting Professor Joachim Luther from Germany, outgoing head of the world-renowned Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, one of Europe's leading solar energy R&D centres.

Prof Luther said he was offered the post of Seris chief executive by NUS and EDB after talks that started last July. He said he was attracted by the opportunities here.

'I like to make things happen - $130 million is a very reasonable budget and we can do a lot,' said Prof Luther. He will lead an initial team of 25 researchers at Seris, which will begin operations in April at a location near NUS.

It aims to have a laboratory size of 5,000 sq m in the next five years.

Prof Luther said yesterday the centre's holy grail is to bring down the costs of harvesting solar energy by 50 to 70 per cent through R&D.

Three research focus areas have also been identified: R&D in silicon-based solar cells to find more efficient ways of using silicon, novel photovoltaic devices and materials and innovative solutions for solar and energy efficient buildings.

Prof Luther added that he has already contacted several top-notch foreign solar researchers to join the team. The institute expects to grow to 90 researchers, and produce 50 doctorate and 20 master's students in five years.

EDB managing director Ko Kheng Hwa described Seris as filling a 'critical R&D gap' in Singapore's solar sector.

Minister of State for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran, who was guest of honour at the launch, cited the event as 'yet another milestone in Singapore's development of the clean energy eco-system'.

The global solar market was estimated at US$30 billion (S$42.4 billion) last year and is projected to continue its strong growth rate to reach more than US$100 billion by 2011, said Mr Iswaran.

'Successful R&D has been and will continue to be the differentiating factor between the success stories,' he said.

Industry players such as Mr Christophe Inglin, managing director of solar firm Phoenix Solar, welcomed the news, saying that such an R&D institute was 'long overdue'.

'The research areas are also commendable, and well positioned to break new ground,' said Mr Inglin. 'What's left missing in the whole picture now is a local market for us to try the technology out ourselves.'

Bright future in solar research
Funding for new institution a sign of Govt's commitment
Jinny Koh, Straits Times 22 Feb 08;

CHEAPER solar energy in five years' time, perhaps by as much as half the current levels.

That is among the key goals of Singapore's first-ever institution dedicated to solar research — the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (Seris) — as it prepares to expand research and development in this field.

And Seris will get part of a $350-million fund the Government has set aside for the clean energy industry, a sign of official commitment to going green even though there have been criticisms that the recently-announced Budget lacked initiatives that would encourage businesses to be pro-environment.

Minister of State for Trade and Industry S Iswaran said the Government had identified the clean energy industry, especially solar, as a key growth area for Singapore.

"As a sign of our commitment, the Government has allocated a total of $350 million of public funding, including $170 million from the National Research Foundation, to develop R&D capabilities and manpower for this sector," said Mr Iswaran, who was the guest-of-honour at the launch of Seris, which will be located at the National University of Singapore (NUS).

Professor Joachim Luther (picture), who will head the Seris team, identified the high costs of using solar energy as one of the issues that his researchers would have to grapple with.

"The cost is a problem because all the technologies already exist … so, they are not the problem. Our main goal is to bring the cost down," said the German, who was the former director of Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, Europe's largest solar energy research and development institution.

Prof Luther estimates that the costs of using solar energy can be halved to $0.30 kilowatt per hour in five years' time.

Another Seris goal, he added, would be to create new applications for solar energy, such as using solar heat to air-condition buildings.

While Seris prepares to expand its research and development in this field, the Economic Development Board (EDB) is also working, step by step, towards getting more mainstream users to adopt solar energy.

For example, under the Green Mark programme — a scheme that recognises buildings for environmental sustainability — all new buildings must have its certification from April. The eventual aim is to get all households to adopt the certification in future.

Speaking at a press conference, EDB's managing director Ko Kheng Hwa said he hopes that such a gradual approach "will provide the awareness and captivate general users to hop into adoption of solar energy".

Seris is a partnership between the NUS and the Clean Energy Programme Office, which is managed by the EDB. The institute hopes to start with 25 researchers and grow to 90 over five years. It also expects to receive a total of $130 million in funding.

Seris will be focusing on three key areas of research: Silicon-based solar cells; novel photovoltaic devices and materials; and innovative components for solar and energy efficient buildings.

While other countries might be ahead of Singapore in harnessing solar energy at present, Professor Barry Halliwell, deputy president for research and technology at the NUS, believes that Singapore can still differentiate itself from the pack.

"We can be smarter, faster and more organised than anywhere else. That's something Singapore does very well," he said.