Singapore to develop 'future' power grid

Experimental energy grid on Jurong Island a 'living lab' for research on new technologies
Robin Chan Straits Times 17 Jul 10;

THE world's largest experimental energy grid, and the first in South-east Asia, is being developed on Jurong Island.

The $38 million venture aims to make Singapore a 'living laboratory' where firms from around the world can develop, test-bed and implement potentially lucrative new energy technologies.

For instance, research done there could mean future power grids will be able to take energy from alternative sources such as solar cells and wind turbines.

And owners of electric cars of the future could be able to sell any surplus energy back to these power grids.

The venture is being led by A*Star's Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences (Ices), which will form partnerships with companies to develop these 'smart' power grids of the future.

Yesterday, local companies SP PowerGrid and CEI Contract Manufacturing signed formal agreements to work at the centre, while engine maker Rolls-Royce and wind turbine giant, Vestas, signed letters of intent for future collaboration.

The new Experimental Power Grid Centre (EPGC) will consist of a 0.47ha research facility on Jurong Island, set to be ready in the second half of next year, and a remote command and control centre at Fusionopolis - already up and running - for energy simulations.

The centre will employ 20 to 25 people, including 15 PhD holders and researchers.

A*Star hopes to have 10 large companies working in partnership with the new centre by the time it is up and running, said Prof Low Teck Seng, deputy managing director for research at A*Star.

Ministry of Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary Ravi Menon said many grids around the world are not equipped for new demands being placed on them.

These demands include integrating renewable energy sources, the rising use of different sources of power in the chemicals and pharmaceuticals sectors, and consumer demand for more information, choice and control in their energy use.

'Meeting these demands will require new technologies and system-level solutions,' said Mr Menon, guest of honour at the groundbreaking ceremony.

The facility is to be built for $25 million by a Meiden Singapore-led consortium at the Ices premises on Jurong Island.

It will have a one megawatt capacity, making it the world's largest such experimental power grid centre. Similar research centres, mainly in the United States, Europe and Japan, have capacities of about half that - less than 550kw.

One megawatt of electricity can power 1-1/2 or two HDB blocks, said SP PowerGrid's deputy managing director of planning and strategy, Mr Jimmy Khoo.

Dr Keith Carpenter, Ices executive director, said the grid needed this large capacity. 'If you are looking at a (power) system to feed a region or a housing estate, then you're talking about this sort of scale. So if we want the research to be valid in that environment, we have to have the capability to go to this level.'

Its scale will also allow for a larger variety of sources to be put into a power grid.

But rather than focusing on the size, the centre's unique feature is its flexibility, said Associate Professor Ashwin Khambadkone, its programme director.

'Emulators' there will be able to mimic other energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels. Eventually, the facility should be able to emulate any grid, from Japan to the US, Prof Ashwin said.

Dr Carpenter said developing a flexible system on a significant scale meant it could become a leader within five years.

Initial project funding is coming from the Government's Reinvestment Fund. After that, funding will come from A*Star's research funds, said Prof Low.

The initial sponsors are four government agencies: the Economic Development Board, the Energy Market Authority, JTC Corp and the National Environment Agency.

'We think that the EPGC provides a unique platform for the industry as we address next generation technologies, and we are hoping that it will be a beachhead for them to tap into other resources we have in A*Star,' said Prof Low.

'What we hope we will achieve is a contribution to developing Singapore as a living lab for companies that hope to experiment with and develop new technologies that could see applications in the new economies of the future.'

Singapore builds another pillar in bid to be smart energy economy
Ronnie Lim Business Times 17 Jul 10;

SINGAPORE is installing another key pillar in its bid to be a smart energy economy, that is, one that is resilient, sustainable and innovative in energy use.

The Experimental Power Grid Centre (EPGC), that will cost an initial $38 million and is due to start up in the second half of 2011, will support R&D on new energy concepts with industry partners. It will help support prototype, experimental test-bed projects like the micro-grid using renewables like sun, wind and waste energy on Pulau Ubin, as well as first-adoption, 'live' tests including those on electric vehicles and smart electricity meters here.

The plan is that the whole-of-government approach to develop technology for a 'smart' grid here - which can for instance, allow owners of electric cars or buildings with solar panels to sell electricity back to the power grid - can also be scaled up and commercialised for global markets in future.

The EPGC - being built next to, and leveraging on resources at the Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences (ICES) on Jurong Island - 'represents a next milestone in our blossoming energy research, development and demonstration landscape', Ravi Menon, permanent secretary for the Trade and Industry Ministry said at its groundbreaking yesterday.

As the Agency for Science, Technology and Research's dedicated centre for energy research, EPGC will undertake R&D for intelligent and decentralised power distribution, interconnection and use. It will complement other agencies in attracting new companies to invest here in areas related to smart grids and distributed generation, he added.

Industry partnerships - like those signed with SP PowerGrid and CEI Contract Manufacturing (covering mobile solar technology) - will be a key focus of EPGC. Two others, Vestas (already committed to a $500 million wind research centre here) and Rolls Royce (aerospace and ships) also signed letters of intent.

'EPGC's focus on R&D of new technologies and commercialisation will help stimulate new investments through project and joint collaboration activities. Industry partners and research institutions will be able to use this facility to develop and verify new technologies in intelligent grids, integration of renewable energy resources and vehicle to grid systems,' Mr Menon added.

The EPGC will, for example, tackle the issue of intermittency of solar power here, which could pose challenges to the stability and reliability of the power grid, he said.

At an earlier press briefing, Professor Ashwin Khambadkone, EPGC's programme director, said that the experimental centre with 1-megawatt capacity will be the largest of its kind worldwide when it starts up. It will employ 20-25 staff, with 15 of them either PhDs or researchers.

EPGC's big 1-MW grid - compared with other experimental centres including in the US, Europe and Japan with smaller generating capacities - 'gives it flexibility, as we can then bring in more assets, emulating different energy sources (like wind turbines or electric vehicle charging) to evaluate', said Professor Low Teck Seng, A*Star's deputy managing director (research).

Building on the initial four industry partners, EPGC can accommodate over 10 partners, although this will ultimately depend on how much grid time is demanded by each partners' project, given that any power grid can only operate 24 hours a day, he added.

As to where Singapore's EPGC project stood vis-a-vis other similar experimental labs overseas, ICES' executive director, Keith Carpenter said that 'while we recognise that there are already players in the field, there are not that many and they are not that far ahead, and we believe we can catch up.'