Chen Huifen, Business Times 7 May 08;
THE Economic Development Board has launched a $20 million solar capability scheme to help the private sector become more environmentally friendly.
Announced at the Semicon Singapore show yesterday, the scheme aims to encourage companies to install solar technology in new building projects. It is offering financial support of up to 40-50 per cent of the cost of solar solutions, capped at $1 million per project.
'The scheme enlarges the practice field for our solar energy ecosystem,' said EDB managing director Ko Kheng Hwa. 'We believe this will go a long way towards building up critical capabilities among various players, including system integrators, architects, engineers and developers.
'The implementation of capabilities nurtured under the scheme will be exportable, as there is growing demand internationally for eco-friendly developments. These capabilities will also support wider adoption of solar energy in Singapore as its cost continues to fall.'
The scheme is applicable to new private sector building developments that meet Green Mark Gold standard, under a benchmarking system administered by the Building and Construction Authority. Projects at existing buildings may be considered case by case.
The scheme is the latest initiative by the Clean Energy Programme Office (Cepo) led by Mr Ko.
Set up early last year, Cepo is an inter-agency workgroup tasked with coordinating clean energy efforts.
Yesterday, Cepo announced the formation of a clean energy international advisory panel . Chaired by EDB chairman Lim Siong Guan, the panel will advise Singapore on the development of a clean energy industry and help chart R&D direction. Panel members include British parliamentarian Ronald Oxburgh, European Photovoltaic Industry Association president Winfried Hoffmann and Norway's Renewable Energy Corp president and chief executive officer Erik Thorsen.
Here comes the sun
40 per cent funding for solar technologies
Teo Xuanwei, Today Online 7 May 08;
EVEN as solar energy has been identified as the main focus of Singapore's clean energy industry, there were no incentives dedicated to enticing businesses to hop onto the solar power bandwagon – until now, that is.
The Economic Development Board (EDB) yesterday unveiled the details of the Solar Capability Scheme (SCS), about two months after Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Mr S Iswaran first mentioned it in Parliament.
Owners of new private buildings — commercial, industrial and residential — will now be able to tap into the $20 million carrot, the latest programme introduced by the Clean Energy Programme Office (Cepo), to offset up to 40 per cent or $1 million of solar technologies installation works. But to qualify, these buildings will have to achieve the Building and Construction Authority's Green Mark Gold standard. Existing buildings undergoing major retrofitting will be also considered on a case-by-case basis.
Seventy per cent of the grant will be reimbursed from the start of the project. The rest will be disbursed two years after the solar energy system becomes operational, provided it meets minimum electricity output requirements.
Before the SCS, only public sector buildings and facilities here enjoyed incentives to develop and test clean energy solutions under Cepo's $17-million Clean Energy Research and Test-bedding programme.
Speaking at the Semicon Singapore conference, EDB managing director Ko Kheng Hwa described the scheme as "very attractive", saying he hoped it would support about 100 projects "within the next few years". As awareness of solar energy technology seeps into the industry, interest and adoption rate should grow, he added.
The long-term goal, however, is to "enlarge the 'practice field'" so as to build up industry expertise in incorporating solar energy technology into design and engineering, noted Mr Ko, who is Cepo's executive director.
More importantly, the skills set will be "exportable" as demand for eco-friendly developments grow globally. "We believe that this scheme will go a long way in building up critical capabilities among various players in the solar energy ecosystem, including system integrators, architects, engineers and developers," he added.
Asked why a scheme to urge the adoption of solar energy technology emerged only now although the Government had announced a $350-million fund for clean energy research and development last March, Mr Ko explained that the clean energy initiative is only about a year old and at this early stage, it was already a "significant step".
But with solar-derived electricity costing two to three times more than normal electricity now, would the scheme entice businesses to make the switch?
Mr Christophe Inglin, managing director of Phoenix Solar, said the financial support will "make a big difference" when companies consider adopting green technologies. It will also complement the Green Mark Incentive Scheme — where building owners are rewarded for environmentally friendly practices — nicely, he added.
Meanwhile, the Clean Energy International Advisory Panel will sit for its first meeting here in June, said EDB. It was formed to advise Cepo on the overall development of the clean energy industry in Singapore.
$20m carrot for building owners to go solar
Govt scheme trims cost of tapping the sun for energy by 30% to 40%
Jessica Cheam, Straits Times 7 May 08;
TAPPING the sun's energy has just been made easier for building owners.
The Government yesterday announced details of a $20 million scheme that could see as many as 100 solar projects sprout around Singapore in the next two years.
The carrot being dangled in front of private developers and building owners is a subsidy that trims the cost of a solar project by 30 per cent to 40 per cent.
The grant is capped at $1 million for each project.
Solar projects usually cost from $100,000 to a few million dollars, depending on the scale and technology used.
'This is a very attractive offer... We expect keen interest from the industry,' said Economic Development Board (EDB) managing director Ko Kheng Hwa, who unveiled the initiative yesterday at the annual Semicon Singapore conference at Suntec City.
The top priority of the Solar Capability Scheme, said Mr Ko, is to build up a critical mass of projects so as to develop manpower capabilities in Singapore's fledgling solar industry.
'We are focusing on boosting the demand side...so the local professionals will learn how to design good solar systems.'
The scheme, first mooted by Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry S. Iswaran in Parliament in March, is the Government's latest answer to increasing calls for incentives to kick-start the solar industry.
The sector has attracted headline investments in the last year, including a $6.3 billion giant solar manufacturing plant that Norwegian firm Renewable Energy Corp is building.
'This scheme will go a long way in building up critical capabilities among various players in the solar energy ecosystem,' said Mr Ko.
It starts with immediate effect and applies to new private buildings that meet a minimum Green Mark Gold standard, according to the EDB.
The Green Mark is a rating system developed by the Building and Construction Authority that rates buildings for their environmental impact and performance.
Developers like City Developments have already incorporated solar systems into new condos, which have been given the Green Mark stamp of approval.
Some factors that will determine the grant size include innovation, design, effectiveness and skills development, said Mr Ko.
The EDB also announced yesterday a new international advisory panel for clean energy that will hold its first meeting next month.
Industry players like Mr Christophe Inglin, the managing director of solar firm Phoenix Solar, hailed the new scheme, saying: 'It's the best news the industry has received for some time.
'We've seen an increase in interest in solar systems. Hopefully, this boost will convince clients that solar is the way to go.'
