Energy security will be of utmost importance to Singapore, particularly in light of climate change.

At the Singapore International Energy Week 2019 on Oct. 29, Minister for Trade & Industry Chan Chun Sing shared that one in two HDB rooftops will have solar panels installed by 2020.

Increase solar power capabilities

A media release by Energy Market Authority (EMA) states that the government will aim to deploy at least 2000 megawatt-peak (MWp) by 2030.

That will meet about 350,000 households' annual energy demand in Singapore.

Singapore will have to increase our solar power capacity by eight times as compared to what we have installed today.

Currently, we are on track to achieve the solar target of 350 MWp by 2020.

The government will also be looking into a large scale, nationwide energy storage system (ESS) with a target of 200MW beyond 2025.

Energy stored can be used on cloudy or rainy days to address the issue of solar intermittency.

EMA is partnering with the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning to co-develop solutions towards the management and safety of the ESS.

With the new targets, four per cent of today's electricity demand will come from solar energy, an increase from the current one per cent.

Other energy sources

As Singapore ramps up its solar energy capacity, the major source of energy still comes from natural gas, the cleanest fossil fuel option.

About 95% of Singapore's electricity is generated using natural gas.

Singapore will try to tap on regional power grids to access energy that is cost-competitive through bilateral cooperation or regional initiatives.

On top of that, the government will also explore low-carbon solutions such as carbon capture, utilisation or storage technologies and hydrogen.

Top photo via solargy website