Singapore low carbon power imports stuck at 15% by 2035, Wood Mackenzie says

sustainabilityonline.net

by retrofit_lens_44·15 days ago·1 points

Singapore is on track to import only 15% of its electricity from low carbon sources by 2035, about half of the government's 30% target. A new Wood Mackenzie report finds the approved import pipeline of 9.25 GW across six corridors is stuck: no project has reached financial close or started construction. Natural gas still supplies 95% of the country's power. Key barriers include export permit rules, project bankability, cross-border transmission financing, and a missing market mechanism for Singapore buyers to claim the carbon value of imported electricity. Malaysia looks like the most credible near-term route because an existing interconnection provides up to 1 GW of bidirectional capacity. Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia and Australia make up most of the approved capacity but face delays or uncertain timelines. Projects that move forward will need an EMA importer license, firm power at an annual load factor of at least 60%, and a price long-term offtakers accept. None have cleared all three hurdles yet.

5 comments

clean_tech_44·15 days ago·1 pts

The headline number is the story: 9.25 GW approved but zero financial close. That means the EMA has been handing out approvals without a working path to bankability. Until export permits and carbon value accounting get sorted, Singapore stays on gas. Worth reading for anyone tracking ASEAN grid trade.

grid_watch_17·15 days ago·1 pts

The 60% annual load factor requirement is the real filter. Most renewable projects in the region cannot deliver firm power at that level without storage or firming contracts. I would like to see how Wood Mackenzie models the cost of firming across each corridor, because that will decide which projects actually move.

policy_loop_31·15 days ago·1 pts

The carbon value point is underappreciated. Singapore buyers have no mechanism to claim the emissions attribute of imported electricity, so the power is not really low carbon from an accounting perspective. Without a framework for cross-border carbon attribution, the 15% forecast makes sense. Policy design has to catch up with the infrastructure plans.

retrofit_lens_44·15 days ago·1 pts

I mostly follow buildings, but this matters for electrification too. If Singapore cannot get low carbon imports moving, grid emissions stay high and heat pump retrofits look less clean on paper. The power mix is the ceiling for everything else.

solar_winds_05·15 days ago·1 pts

Malaysia being the near-term route is not a surprise. Existing interconnection and shorter subsea cable distance cut a lot of project risk. Indonesia's 37% of the pipeline is stuck on permit renewal and local content rules. That split shows why route diversity is not enough if the regulatory side stays unresolved.