Business Times 16 Feb 10;
SgEF has developed a fuel that's a lot more environment-friendly. Are we ready for it? By Timothy Seow
IF JEREMY Ng - founder and CEO of Singapore Emulsion Fuel Pte Ltd (SgEF) - has his way, all of Singapore's public buses will be powered by his company's very own nano-emulsion diesel in the near future.
SgEF opened Asia's first clear nano-emulsion diesel plant in Tuas two weeks ago. With last December's Copenhagen summit yielding disappointing results, and climate change statistics under much scrutiny recently, eco-enthusiasts could consider this a small plus for Singapore's green drive.
Mr Ng, describing the emulsion diesel, said, 'our team of researchers developed a breakthrough emulsion fuel that significantly lowers the diesel content within biofuels in use in the market today'.
This is done by blending diesel with water and SgEF's biodegradable patent-pending proprietary additive, said Mr Ng.
Formerly in the semiconductor industry, Mr Ng comes across as an optimist - with big plans for a company barely three years old. For example, SgEF's new 40,000 square foot facility is targeted at meeting the needs of both Singapore and the greater Asia-Pacific region.
SgEF already has a partnership with a Malaysian company called Pamuri Green, and is finalising a joint venture with an Indonesian partner. Mr Ng also intends to test the South China and Japan markets by 2011.
Mr Ng is confident about the success of his products. 'Competition for emulsion fuels? I don't see anyone. Biofuels are not even a competitor because of the difference in volume we can provide,' he said.
SgEF currently has the capacity to produce 30,000 litres a day. 'In the next 12 months, we hope to ramp up production to 100,000 litres,' added Mr Ng. SgEF eventually hopes to add an extra digit to this figure, reaching a maximum daily capacity of 300,000 litres.
That is not all. SgEF presently has 13 staff, and Mr Ng is looking to increase this by almost 50 per cent in 2010. 'By the end of this year, we will probably increase to about 20, with additional chemists, technical and sales staff,' he said.
Mr Ng also said he expects revenue this year to be 'in the range of $3-5 million'.
Things were far less rosy when it all began in December 2006. Recalled Mr Ng: 'There were challenges such as getting funds and getting support from the government. For a niche start-up company like us, without a track record, it's not easy.'
To compound matters, SgEF met with the worst financial crisis in more than 70 years less than two years into the venture
Yet, the financial storm clouds had a thick silver lining. 'It is a fact that the recession helped us,' admitted Mr Ng.
'In 2008, a lot of big companies and MNCs began pulling out of Singapore. Only then did the government realise they needed to grow local entrepreneurs. That's when I changed my strategy and decided to look for Spring Singapore,' he continued. 'That made it easier for us to talk to Spring.'
This change of strategy proved to be a winner; in June 2009, Spring SEEDS (Start-up Enterprise Development Scheme) agreed to provide capital.
Mr Ng is also not hesitant to credit other partner government agencies like the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) and the National Environment Agency (NEA), which he said were very supportive.
In fact, it was the NEA that introduced SgEF to Poh Lian Construction. 'Poh Lian was in search of an alternative energy provider to help them manage their carbon footprint in residential areas. They have been using super green diesel to power their machinery ever since,' Mr Ng shared.
Super green diesel, along with eDiesel, are SgEF's flagship products that were released in conjunction with the opening of their production facility.
The former is designed for building and construction machines, while the latter targets the public transport, maritime and port, and industrial sectors.
Currently, in the green energy world, one of the most common forms of biofuel is biodiesel, used widely in Europe. Biodiesels are produced from renewable resources such as vegetable oils and animal fats. It is usually blended with petrodiesel, and most cars can run on a blend of 5 per cent biodiesel and 95 per cent petrodiesel without modification.
Mr Ng says that emulsion diesel is 'totally different' from biodiesel. According to SgEF, its emulsion diesel requires only 60 per cent of petrodiesel, with the other 40 per cent made up of water and their patent-pending additive. SgEF emulsion diesel also does not require any retrofitting or modification of engines.
Mr Ng believes emulsion diesel's advantage is logical. 'Just think about it: when a certain amount of fuel is replaced by water, it is logical that the emissions would have less carbon,' he said.
Mr Ng's claims appear to have stood up to the test. SMRT partnered SgEF in product testing over a period of three months, and the use of SgEF emulsion diesel reduced CO2 emissions 10 per cent and other greenhouse gases almost 50 per cent. Fuel efficiency also improved 9 per cent.
Despite these promising figures, challenges remain. 'The greatest challenge,' he said, 'is making the consumer switch to green technology. They need to understand that protecting the environment is more important than cost-saving.'
While most are cynical about the climate change summit in Copenhagen, Mr Ng is hopeful. 'Even though the outcome of Copenhagen was not quite what we expected, all nations now know how important CO2 reduction is,' he said.
He added, 'prior to this, it wasn't so easy for me to talk to people about this issue. Now, everyone realises that to go into green technology, they need to pay a premium. It makes it easier for me as well.'
And while profit margins may be thin now, Mr Ng is not worried. 'It's basically economy of scale. Eventually, cost will decrease.'
Economy of scale means getting bigger, and when asked whether the domestic transport market was a target, Mr Ng responded with a resolute 'definitely'.
If his optimism is rewarded, it might not be too long before emulsion diesel becomes an integral part of how Singaporeans get from place to place.
Water-blended diesel to fuel green drive
Singapore firm develops emulsion fuel to curb reliance on fossil fuels
Christopher Tan, Straits Times 18 Feb 10;
WATER and oil do not mix, but a Singapore start-up begs to differ.
Singapore Emulsion Fuel (SgEF) has formulated diesel that is one-fifth water, and is marketing it as fuel that is greener and more cost-efficient.
On Feb 5, it opened a $1 million, 40,000 sq ft plant in Tuas that can produce up to 300,000 litres of emulsion fuel a day.
'We are starting with 30,000 litres a day, and shall go to 100,000 litres in a year's time,' said SgEF founder and chief executive Jeremy Ng.
Mr Ng, 55, left a 20-year career in the semiconductor industry for this green pursuit four years ago.
With $300,000 seed money from Spring Singapore's Start-up Enterprise Development Scheme, and about $700,000 shared between partners, he set up SgEF in 2006 'to address the global dependence on fossil fuels and to offer a viable alternative to existing biofuels'.
Mr Ng admits that emulsion fuels are not entirely new, and that the idea goes back a century.
'For the past 10 years or so, city buses in Europe have been using emulsion fuel,' he said.
But he added that SgEF's formula is unique - a patent is pending - in that the water and diesel do not separate when left unused for extended periods.
Ultra-low sulphur diesel is blended with water (20 per cent) and a proprietary binding agent (20 per cent) to make fuel that is clear like conventional diesel, unlike other emulsion diesels.
The fuel can be used in all existing diesel engines and machinery with no need for any modification.
Because of its water content, it is said to reduce black smoke emission by up to 80 per cent, improve fuel efficiency by up to 9 per cent, and reduce exhaust temperature by 20 per cent.
Building contractor Poh Lian Construction tested the emulsion diesel and found positive results.
'We used it for our air compressor and generator sets at two private property developments and the black smoke emission dropped significantly,' said Poh Lian's senior project manager Png Koon Guan.
He said he was trying to convince the management to continue using the fuel.
Construction foundation specialist CSC Holdings tried out the fuel too, but did not obtain any conclusive results.
Its purchasing manager Eileen Wong said: 'We tested it nine months ago, but we are not convinced because we could not quantify any benefits.
'We will embark on a more detailed test after Chinese New Year.'
Transport operator SMRT said it tested the product four years ago and 'did not find it suitable for our use'. It would not elaborate but The Straits Times understands cost was one reason.
Mr Ng said the emulsion fuel 'is generally more expensive than conventional diesel' with a premium of about 5 per cent. 'But increasing environmental awareness is pushing more companies everywhere towards alternatives such as hybrids and biodiesels,' he noted.
Indeed, building contractors with green credentials 'have a higher status, which helps them in future tenders', said Poh Lian's Mr Png.
SgEF, meanwhile, is working to distribute its product to regional markets such as Malaysia and Indonesia.
Mr Ng said the company will also work towards raising the fuel's water content to 30 per cent in future, thus reducing its environmental impact further and cutting Singapore's oil dependence.
'Singapore uses between 6 million and 10 million litres of diesel a day, so even if we can reduce that by 1 per cent, it is significant,' he said.
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