Singapore buys most of its power from gas and has little room for solar at home, so its link to Malaysian generation matters. On Monday, October 26, the island’s Energy Market Authority (EMA) and the Energy Commission of Malaysia (Suruhanjaya Tenaga, or ST) renewed a memorandum of understanding on energy cooperation, signed on the sidelines of the 19th Singapore International Energy Week.
What the renewed pact covers
The two regulators first signed the MOU in 2020 and have held regular dialogues and technical exchanges since. The renewal comes as both mark their 25th anniversaries this year. Under it they will deepen regulatory exchanges and knowledge sharing on planning and reliability of electricity and piped gas systems, regulation of wholesale and retail electricity markets, cross-border electricity trading projects, Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and interconnection capacity. Solar and energy storage collaboration gets particular mention.
EMA chief executive Puah Kok Keong said the MOU marks another step in the agencies’ longstanding cooperation. “This can facilitate greater renewable electricity trade, support investments in renewable energy projects, and advance a more interconnected regional power system,” he said. ST chief executive Siti Safinah Salleh said that as energy systems grow more complex, close collaboration between regulators is essential for a secure and reliable supply and for cross-border trade.
The Johor import
A concrete project is already in the pipeline. In August, EMA gave conditional approval to Sembcorp Utilities and the Malaysian company Southern Solar Alliance to import 900 megawatts of electricity from Johor. The power would come from solar and battery energy storage systems there.
Why Singapore needs partners
Singapore is, in the words of the sources, “alternative-energy disadvantaged”: low wind speeds, a small tidal range and no hydro. About 95 per cent of its electricity comes from natural gas. Its Green Plan aims for 2 gigawatt-peak of solar by 2030 and a 36% improvement in energy efficiency over 2005 levels, and the country plans to import up to 6 gigawatts of low-carbon electricity by 2035, roughly 30 per cent of its energy needs then.
Earlier trials have included a two-year import of 100 megawatts from Peninsular Malaysia. The Johor approval is much larger, nine times that size.
Sources
- Singapore, Malaysia renew agreement to strengthen energy cooperation
- Energy in Singapore
- Singapore, Malaysia deepen cooperation on energy technology – TNGlobal
Photo: Ven Jiun (Greg) Chee / Unsplash (Unsplash License)
