GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT

Dr Kanwaljit Soin asked the Minister for Trade and Industry how much energy Singapore uses to produce one dollar of Gross Domestic Product and whether Singapore is energy wasteful when compared to other industrialized countries.

Mr Yeo Cheow Tong: In 1991 (latest available cross-country comparison), Singapore consumed nearly 11.0 million joules of energy* to produce one US dollar of GDP. Singapore uses less energy per dollar of GDP than Canada, South Korea, the United States and the United Kingdom (see Annex A) (Cols. 1457 - 1458). However, Singapore uses more energy per dollar of GDP compared to Hong Kong, Japan and France.

*Energy consumption = (Total Indigenous Product + Imports - Exports - Bunkers � Stock Changes) of gaseous fuel (eg. LPG, natural gas), liquid fuel (eg. petroleum, naphtha, fuel oil kerosene, etc), gaseous fuel (eg. LPG, natural gas) and solid fuels (eg. coal).

There is a wide variation in the energy used per dollar of GDP. The different composition of GDP in each country would be a major reason for this. Taking Singapore and Hong Kong, for example, Singapore's energy consumption per dollar of GDP is about four times of Hong Kong's. However, Singapore has a much larger manufacturing base (which needs more energy per dollar of GDP) that accounts for over 29% of its GDP in 1991, whereas Hong Kong's was only about 15%. It should also be noted that Singapore is a tropical country and unlike the other countries in the list, consumes energy for air-conditioning throughout the year.

The Government will continue to actively promote energy conservation in Singapore, through a combination of education and fiscal measures. The Building Control Division of the Public Works Department has already incorporated a set of energy conservation standards for building design into its Building Regulations. PUB will continue to conduct energy audits, workshops/seminars and provide advisory services to customers on more efficient use of energy in industries and buildings. On electricity generation, PUB has also been improving its efficiency by investing in newer and larger equipment. ANNEX A COMPARISON OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION PER US DOLLAR OF GDP AMONG G7 COUNTRIES AND NEWLY INDUSTRIALIZED ECONOMIES FOR 1991 Energy Consumption Per US$ GDP at Current Market Prices (Million Joules/US$ GDP) Canada 15.0 France 7.0 Japan 4.8 Hong Kong 3.9 South Korea 14.0 Singapore 11.0 United Kingdom 29.6 United States 14.1 Note: (1) Energy Consumption figures are extracted from the 1991 Energy Statistics Yearbook published by the United Nations. (2) GDP figures are extracted from the International Financial Statistics published by the International Monetary Fund, except the GDP for Hong Kong, which is extracted from the Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics August 1993. The GDP are at current market prices in 1991 and converted at end-of-the-year exchange rates to US$. (3) Data on Germany, Italy and Taiwan are incomplete or not available.