SOLAR ENERGY

SOLAR ENERGY

28.

Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Minister for Trade and Industry whether the Government should seriously study the feasibility of using solar energy for electricity generation.

Dr Vivian Balakrishnan: The electricity market is open to new technologies and the use of different fuel types, including solar energy. Investors who are able to be commercially competitive using solar energy are welcome to enter the electricity market to be a power producer. Studies have shown that the cost of electricity generated from solar (also called photovoltaic or PV) energy is currently about 2.5 times higher than the current electricity tariff. At the current level of PV costs and efficiencies, PV systems for electricity generation do not appear economically viable.

Cost aside, solar energy may still not be suitable for wide-scale implementation because, even if the useable roof areas of all HDB blocks are installed with PV panels, the total amount of electricity that can be generated from solar energy is about 3% of the total electricity demand of Singapore .

Despite these factors, improvement in PV efficiency and reduction of PV costs, as well as volatility of oil prices could tilt the balance in favour of PV energy. The Government is closely monitoring developments in this area, which could also provide opportunities to develop a PV industry serving the region. Also, PV systems integrated into buildings as roofs or facade walls could serve dual functions of building construction and energy conservation. There is scope to explore this further. For example, JTC is working with NEA and a PV company on a project that integrates PV into a building at the Biopolis.

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