They are ready for transition to low-carbon economy, but hope for subsidy to cushion impact
Jessica Cheam, Straits Times 4 Dec 09;
INDUSTRY leaders are bracing themselves for the pain that will come with Singapore's move to cut greenhouse gas emissions and are seeking the Government's help to ease the transition.
Senior industry figures told The Straits Times yesterday that the move to curb emissions was something they were expecting to happen 'sooner or later' in line with international trends.
However, they also feel that private industries will need help to make the move to a low-carbon economy.
Power generator Tuas Power had already seen this coming, said chief executive Lim Kong Puay.
'We will embrace the drive towards energy efficiency and look at new technologies, such as the use of clean coal technologies and biomass, which allow us to further reduce our emissions,' he said.
Mr Lim acknowledged that in the short term, the higher costs would be passed on to consumers and businesses.
'So, it would be helpful if some form of subsidy could be given to cushion the impact,' he said.
The Government announced on Wednesday that Singapore would undertake voluntary action to reduce its emissions growth to 16 per cent below 'business as usual' levels by 2020 - if a global deal is reached at the climate change conference in Copenhagen this month.
A mix of regulations and fiscal measures will be used, and 'market forces will also have an important role to play to make sure that people and businesses get the right price signals', said Senior Minister S. Jayakumar.
In particular, the Green Mark standard used to rate the environmental performance of buildings may be raised, and industries will be encouraged to use energy more efficiently and reduce their carbon emissions.
Details will be announced later and will depend on the outcome at Copenhagen, but industry leaders say they anticipate a range of measures, including higher taxes that put a price on carbon.
Singapore Business Federation (SBF) chief executive Teng Theng Dar noted that sectors like manufacturing would have to begin 'factoring in plans to limit or cut their emissions ahead of 2020'.
Mr Teng believes that while some sectors will feel pain, industries such as those in clean energy and energy efficiency will clearly benefit from new opportunities.
'But given that many clean technologies are still costly to implement, it will be good if there are more assistance and funding schemes to help firms adopt sustainable solutions,' he said.
Property developers say they will embrace the higher Green Mark standard, but they want more incentives.
This could be on the demand side, with owners of green homes and buildings granted reduced property tax rates, said a GuocoLand spokesman.
City Developments group general manager Chia Ngiang Hong agreed, adding that the Government could consider making the measures even more attractive by introducing tax incentives for developers, for example.
Former Nominated MP Edwin Khew, who is also chief executive of waste recycling firm IUT Global, said the impact on industries of the new green regime would become clear only much later.
For now, companies need to look for 'low-hanging fruits' like energy efficiency, which is easy to implement and effective in reducing carbon emissions.
Industrial developer Ascendas Land recently reduced energy consumption at its headquarters at The Galen, Singapore Science Park, by 65 per cent through a retrofit of its chiller plant.
This cut The Galen's carbon emissions by 2,500 tons a year, equivalent to taking 550 cars off the road annually, said Trane Singapore, the energy services company that did the retrofit.
Industries can reduce carbon emissions if all companies take action on energy efficiency, said Mr Khew, who added that the main obstacle is getting the financing. This is where local banks and the Government can step in by sharing some of the funding risks of such projects, which are minimal, he added.
SBF's Mr Teng noted that in learning to cut emissions, Singapore firms could also benefit by exporting their knowledge and sharing best practices in their green initiatives with the global economy.
