Straits Times 7 Feb 09;
THE search for ways to cut costs in the economic downturn is turning an increasing number of companies on a green route.
The National Environment Agency (NEA) announced yesterday that $3.22 million has been allocated to more than 100 companies under the Energy Efficiency Improvement Assistance Scheme to conduct detailed studies on their power consumption and to enable cost-cutting.
The $10 million scheme subsidises half the cost for companies in the manufacturing and building sectors to conduct energy audits.
Applications for the funding have been steadily increasing in the four years since its launch.
From a paltry four approved applications in 2005, this number ballooned to 121 approved last year.
One benefactor of the subsidy is SingPost.
The public postal licensee invested $1.9 million in installing new energy efficient cooling units at its Paya Lebar premises two years ago.
The company has since managed to shave $1.2 million, or 23per cent, off its annual power bill.
Mr Tan Swee Guan, senior vice-president for property management and engineering at SingPost said that rising electricity prices meant the company was looking for ways to reduce its energy costs.
'It is precisely in an economic downturn that every dollar saved can count towards the bottom line,' he said.
A spokesman for NEA said that now is the ideal time for companies to undertake conversion or retrofitting projects which they may not be able to carry out during high demand periods when operation downtime is very limited.
The scheme, which complements the $50 million Sustainable Energy Fund launched last year, is part of a wider push by the Government to promote investment in green technology across all sectors of the economy.
AMRESH GUNASINGHAM
