Initiatives announced to help firms prepare for Energy Conservation Act

Chris Howells, Channel NewsAsia 17 Mar 10;

SINGAPORE : The National Environment Agency (NEA) will start the Energy Efficient National Partnership (EENP) next month.

It will help companies build the necessary capabilities to attain higher levels of energy efficiency.

Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment and Water Resources Amy Khor told an industry forum on Tuesday that the programme is voluntary.

Dr Khor said: "We have two components, firstly the energy efficiency learning network, comprising activities like forums, conferences, learning journey, so companies can share best practices, energy efficiency ideas, technology and so on.

"The other component of the EENP is the energy efficiency recognition scheme to reward companies that have implemented excellent energy efficiency and energy management programmes."

Companies will get help with energy efficiency programmes they can implement.

The government is also preparing companies for the Energy Conservation Act that Singapore is targeting to take effect by 2013.

This includes getting companies to appoint trained energy managers who will monitor and report energy use and submit plans for efficiency improvement.

The government will also weigh in on setting minimum standards to ensure uniform energy efficiency management.

Case studies from overseas have shown that companies can reduce their energy consumption by 10 to 15 per cent through such programmes. - CNA/ms

Singapore energy efficiency schemes taking off
Joyce Hooi, Business Times 17 Mar 10;

TWO years after the Grant for Energy Efficient Technologies (GREET) scheme was unveiled, the numbers are materialising.

'As of end-2009, five companies have come onboard and are expected to collectively gain $700,000 in energy savings annually,' said Amy Khor, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, yesterday.

For these five applications, a total of $2.4 million has been approved under the GREET scheme which will co-fund up to 50 per cent of the companies' investment costs in energy-efficient technology.

Another scheme, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Assistance Scheme (EASe), also appears to have found wings. Last year, 18 applications were approved for the scheme - which co-funds energy appraisals - within a span of seven months, bringing the total to 161 since it was launched in 2005.

Approximately $4.51 million has been approved for the EASe appraisal projects, which are estimated to produce total energy savings of $43.7 million per year for the companies involved.

The two schemes had been given prominence in recent weeks as the government pushed for greater energy efficiency from its largest consumers of energy, through the implementation of the Energy Conservation Act by 2013.

'My advice to companies is to start preparing themselves early as it would eventually be in their interest and benefit to do so,' said Dr Khor, who was the guest of honour at the Carbon Disclosure Forum yesterday.

The forum - organised by the Singapore Business Federation, Singapore Compact for CSR and Association for Sustainable & Responsible Investment in Asia (ASrIA) - sought to drum up participation in the United Kingdom-based Carbon Disclosure Project.

The project collects climate change data from 2,500 companies worldwide on a yearly basis in the form of surveys that seek information on firms' energy usage and carbon footprints.

Last year, 18 companies in Singapore were sent the survey, out of which five firms responded - CapitaLand, City Developments, OCBC, Singapore Airlines and Wilmar International.

'There's still some way to go here, but we are going to see disclosure really developing in the next two or three years,' said David St Maur Sheil, the joint executive director of ASrIA.

'At the moment, we do not have any plans for mandatory carbon disclosure but we will not rule it out,' said Dr Khor.