S'pore can set example for ASEAN on energy use: IEA

By Wong Mun Wai, Channel NewsAsia
09 November 2007

SINGAPORE: Singapore can set an example for the rest of ASEAN when it comes to the use of energy, said William Ramsay, the deputy executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA).

According to IEA, the Energy Studies Institute at the National University of Singapore could look into areas such as analysing the use of energy by studying energy policy, security and its impact on the environment.

Mr Ramsay said the work would show how ASEAN and in particular, Singapore, can contribute to how energy is being used.

"Singapore, at the centre of ASEAN, could begin making significant changes by doing things differently," he said.

The deputy executive director of IEA is in Singapore to discuss the agency's latest report on energy use.

The report highlights a fact that countries around the equator, like Singapore, would be among the first to suffer from the effects of polluting the planet.

Mr Ramsay said: "Places like China and India and countries not far from the equator know they are going to be the first victims of this. They know they are going to suffer the weather irregularities, they are going to suffer the extreme rains or the extreme droughts; they know they are going to suffer migration of diseases. So intellectually and at the senior policy levels in those countries, we see recognition. The question is how well they can translate that into action."

For the first time, the report concentrates on the two economic giants, China and India.

For China, it says if the country adopts the policies that are being planned, China could cut its energy use by about 15 percent by 2030.

And for India, the country could lower its coal imports by more than half by 2030.


- CNA/so

Pact Paves Way For Shared Trans-regional Power Grid

Aug 24 2007 (TODAY)

Energy ministers from the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean)
yesterday took a concrete step towards ensuring the 10-member group is
more plugged in.

Meeting in Singapore for a day to review Asean-wide developments in the
power sector, they agreed to conclude a memorandum of understanding that
will, in time, help to bolt together the region's different transmission
networks.

The agreement should pave the way for establishing what is known as the
Asean Power Grid, which could help countries share electricity across
borders, boosting growth and providing greater security for consumers.

"While the development of a fully integrated Asean energy market is a
still distant goal and will be a very long process, we have started to
move in the right direction," said Professor S Jayakumar, Singapore's
deputy prime minister. Yesterday's memorandum "provides the essential
framework for us to bring the project forward", he said.

To date, the bloc has only two cross-border power connections: between
Thailand and Malaysia, and between Malaysia and Singapore. Architects of
the ambitious project hope the trans-regional grid could see a web of
connections across Asean, switching power between nations that have
abundant energy, to those that are in need.

"The agreement is a critical first step…it shows that there is government
support for the initiative," said Mr S. Isawaran, Singapore's minister of
state for trade and industry.

When the project takes off, he added, the next stage would be to identify
areas where the private sector can come in.

The ministers also noted progress in the finalising of a new Asean
Petroleum Security Agreement, which is seen as an important mechanism to
deal with petroleum shortages. They hoped to sign the pact next year,
replacing the 1986 agreement. - Sharon Vasoo and Jason Lee

Greenpeace: No Safety Sureties For 'ring Of Fire'

Aug 24 2007 (TODAY)

Environmental group Greenpeace urged South-east Asian energy ministers
yesterday to scrap plans to harness civilian nuclear power for the region,
citing safety concerns and weapons proliferation risks.

"It is a dangerous and costly choice to secure energy in the region
because nuclear power plants pose risks in the long term," said Ms Nur
Hidayati, a climate and energy campaigner for Greenpeace South-east Asia.

"Our region is very dynamic - geographically we are located around the
Pacific 'Ring of Fire' and we are also the meeting point of several major
tectonic plates," she went on. "You cannot guarantee the safety of the
nuclear power plant in this volatile region."

Greenpeace activists also said the region does not have the expertise and
the trained personnel to operate nuclear power plants, and warned of the
dangers that plutonium - a key ingredient for making a nuclear bomb -
could get into the wrong hands.

Greenpeace said Asean states also lacked experience in storing and
disposing of radioactive wastes. - Agencies

Singapore urges ASEAN partners to tackle energy, climate issues

By Dominique Loh, Channel NewsAsia
23 August 2007

SINGAPORE : Singapore is urging its ASEAN partners to tackle issues of energy security and climate change.

Speaking at the ASEAN Energy Meeting in Singapore on Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister S Jayakumar outlined four key areas for the region's energy priorities.

One area is to adopt and encourage energy efficiency so as to help cut energy needs.

Another critical area is the development of a competitive regional energy market.

This will hopefully mean better access to energy supplies and the transfer of new energy technologies.

Prof Jayakumar believes investing in R&D will also reduce CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions.

But he said ASEAN countries must also promote a clean environment and find ways to protect forests, rivers, lakes and air quality.

With Singapore taking over the ASEAN chair recently, he said energy and climate concerns will feature in themes for upcoming summits.

"ASEAN's continued growth and prosperity hinges upon managing the competition for resources through cooperative efforts such as joint exploration and development of energy resources, more integrated markets, and sharing of expertise and technology," said Prof Jayakumar, who is also Singapore's Law Minister and Coordinating National Security Minister.

"Although the challenges are immense, they are not insurmountable if we can strengthen our cooperation, so that the region as a whole can benefit," he added. - CNA /ls

Biofuels From Brazil Next?

Aug 4 2007 (TODAY)

Besides chicken and aircraft, the country is big on ethanol export, too

HEDIRMAN SUPIAN
hedirman@mediacorp.com.sg

BITING into a chicken drumstick might just give you a taste of Brazil,
with up to 80 per cent of frozen chicken imports coming from that country.

But Brazilian Ambassador Paulo Alberto da Silveira Soares (picture) said
the country has much more to offer: "We are not here just to sell chicken.
It's much more than that. That's just to give a taste of things to come."

Birds of a more mechanical kind also have a presence here.

Brazilian aircraft maker Embraer has a regional base here serving the rest
of Asia.

"From chickens to aircraft, Brazil's exports are growing very
considerably. We are no longer only a food commodity supplier to the world
market. Our industrial products are also doing well," he said.

Brazil is the largest producer for sugarcane and a top exporter of soya
beans and beef. Oil-rich Brazil also exports up to US$500 million ($759
million) worth of crude to the Republic annually. But it is working on
ethanol as an alternative fuel, derived from its major agricultural
production of sugarcane.

"There's enormous potential in biofuels. We're the world's biggest
exporter of sugar, raw sugar, refined sugar - but we're also making
ethanol. Cars in Brazil are mostly fuelled by ethanol," he said.

"Everyone's talking about climate change and pollution - it's high time we
provide an alternative fuel. It's cheaper than oil, and sustainable
because you can keep planting sugarcane. We've been planting it for the
past 400 years."

Brazil exports ethanol to Japan and is looking to do the same here.

Trade between Singapore and the South American country were valued at
$3.16 billion in 2006, and $1.58 billion for the first half of this year.

Brazil was Singapore's 22nd largest trading partner for 2006, while the
Republic is the second largest Asian direct investor in the country, after
Japan.

Sembcorp Marine's Jurong Shipyard and Keppel Offshore and Marine employ up
to 10,000 Brazilian workers and have "revamped the shipyard industry"
there.

Mr Choo Chiau Beng, chairman and chief executive officer of Keppel
Offshore and Marine Limited and who also serves as non-resident ambassador
to Brazil, said: "Brazil is a resource-rich country with good people. To
succeed in doing business in the country, you have to be committed to
understand its national will, operating environment, diverse cultures and
people."

The Brazilian Ambassador said Foreign Minister George Yeo will be in
Brazil later this month to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for closer
economic cooperation between the Republic and Mercusor - the regional
trade bloc consisting of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.

"There's great potential because it's not only Brazil that Singapore will
have access to. We can serve as the gateway to Latin America," he said.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is expected to visit
Singapore early next year - the first Brazilian president to do so in the
history of the Republic.

Energy Boost

Johnson Choo
johnsonchoo@mediacorp.com.sg
Aug 23 2007 (TODAY)

PowerSeraya aims to be a full-fledged integrated energy company

PowerSeraya is transforming itself from a pure electricity generator into
a full-fledged integrated energy company.

The company announced yesterday that as the Singapore energy market opens
up, it is moving from its core business in electricity, to include other
commodities such as steam, water, oil and gas.

As part of this move, the company which supplies about 28 per cent of
Singapore's energy needs, will be investing $800 million to build a new
800-megawatt natural-gas-fired power plant on Jurong Island. Scheduled to
be completed as early as 2009, the highly efficient twin-unit
Co-Generation Combined Cycle Plant (Co-Gen CCP) will replace three
oil-fired steam units that have a combined output of 250 megawatts, to
produce both electricity and steam simultaneously.

"More importantly, this new plant, designed for higher thermal efficiency,
is expected to reduce the PowerSeraya's carbon footprint by a further 10
per cent, on top of the 30 per cent reduction we were able to achieve over
the last 10 years," said PowerSeraya Chairman, Mr Tan Yam Pin, at a
signing ceremony.

"With this development, it is our intention to seek carbon credits for
this project and to enlarge in carbon trading in the future."

A second leg of the transformation plan involves an agreement to supply
ultra-high-pressure steam from the new plant to Petrochemical Corporation
of Singapore for 15 years starting third quarter of 2009.

In April, PowerSeraya has invested $20 million to set up PetroSeraya, a
new physical oil-trading company that will hedge and trade in petroleum
products, representing the third part of its diversification strategy.

"PetroSeraya will serve to strengthen PowerSeraya's fuel security while
addressing market volatility associated with oil price fluctuation," said
Mr Neil McGregor, Managing Director of PowerSeraya. "In addition,
PetroSeraya will achieve greater economies of scale for the company
through bulk purchase and resale of excess oil."

PowerSeraya typically uses about 2 million metric tons of fuel for its
existing 9 power generation units. The company buys between 60 and 80 per
cent of its needs on term contracts, and hedges "no more than 50 per cent"
of its purchases with derivative contracts. PowerSeraya can store up to 1
million tonnes of fuel at its facilities.

The price of 380-centistoke oil in Singapore - a fuel that PowerSeraya
uses - climbed 20 per cent to a record US$404.50 ($617) a metric tonne on
July 20 compared to a year ago.

Temasek Holdings - the sole owner of PowerSeraya - announced in June that
it plans to sell the energy company, together with Senoko Power and Tuas
Power by the end of next year.

Analysts said the expansion plans might boost the estimated $2.5 billion
value of the company.

Several international energy players, including Mitsubishi Electric, Tokyo
Electric Power, Hong Kong's CLP Holdings, Malaysia's YTL Power
International, Australia's Babcock & Brown and General Electric are
believed to be interested in bidding for these three companies.

China hails car trial a 'success'

By Michael Bristow
BBC News, Beijing
21 August 2007

A four-day scheme that took 1.3 million cars off Beijing's streets reduced air pollution by 15-20%, officials in the Chinese capital say.

Moving around the city was also easier during the test period, with the speed of vehicles up by more than 50%.

Beijing hopes to repeat the scheme next year to cut both pollution and traffic when the city hosts the Olympic Games.

But officials ducked questions over whether the air quality was good enough for athletes taking part in the games.

IOC warning

Speaking at a press conference to announce the results of the car ban, environmental official Du Shaozhong declared himself satisfied.

"I am sure we will be able to ensure good air quality during the Olympic Games," he said, although he admitted four days was not long enough to make a big difference to pollution levels.

Four types of pollutants, including carbon monoxide and small particles, were tested over the four-day period, which ended on Monday.

Mr Du, who bicycled to work during the car ban, could not say whether the improved air quality would have made the atmosphere good enough to run a marathon.

International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge recently said endurance events could be cancelled if the air quality is not up to scratch.

Mr Du would only say that if air quality met national standards it would be good enough for "all kinds of outdoor exercises".

Fewer private cars on the road meant more people used public transport. Passenger numbers were up by 15%, it was revealed.

This meant buses - there were 800 more of them on the roads - could travel at 20 km/h (12mph) instead of the usual 14 km/h (9mph).

Chinese officials also had a kind word for the 6,500 police officers on duty during the four days, many of whom had "overcome fatigue" to ensure the test went off smoothly.

During the test period, odd-numbered cars were banned on Saturday and Monday, while cars with even-numbered registrations had to stay off the roads on Friday and Sunday.

Biofuel Industries set to be first to sell green power to grid

By Jeana Wong, Channel NewsAsia
16 August 2007

SINGAPORE: Environmental technology firm Biofuel Industries is set to build the first biomass cogeneration plant that will sell its power to the national grid.

The S$30-million plant, to be located in Tuas, will produce 9.9 megawatts of electricity.

Although its generation capacity is relatively small, the company says it is part of its plan to create an integrated recycling business in Singapore.

Biofuel Industries has hired Industrial Power Technologies to build and run the cogeneration plant under a memorandum of understanding signed on Thursday.

By turning wood waste into fuel chips, the plant is expected to halve electricity production costs.

The company says it earns revenue from collecting the waste, exporting the recycled fuel chips and eventually selling the power to the grid.

It is now drawing up plans for the Tuas plant and construction is expected to begin by the end of the year.

"We also have two other projects that are being planned and in process. They are progressing very well. That would further add to the whole integrated recycling business," said Er Kwong Wah, chairman of Biofuel Industries.

"We're producing 1,000 to 1,500 tonnes of waste wood every day, including horticultural waste. This waste must go somewhere... The end goal is to have a perpetual business that will get rid of all the waste and at the same time, doing it in such a way that it makes business sense," he continues. - CNA/ac

Biofuel Industries set to be first to sell green power to grid

By Jeana Wong, Channel NewsAsia
16 August 2007

SINGAPORE: Environmental technology firm Biofuel Industries is set to build the first biomass cogeneration plant that will sell its power to the national grid.

The S$30-million plant, to be located in Tuas, will produce 9.9 megawatts of electricity.

Although its generation capacity is relatively small, the company says it is part of its plan to create an integrated recycling business in Singapore.

Biofuel Industries has hired Industrial Power Technologies to build and run the cogeneration plant under a memorandum of understanding signed on Thursday.

By turning wood waste into fuel chips, the plant is expected to halve electricity production costs.

The company says it earns revenue from collecting the waste, exporting the recycled fuel chips and eventually selling the power to the grid.

It is now drawing up plans for the Tuas plant and construction is expected to begin by the end of the year.

"We also have two other projects that are being planned and in process. They are progressing very well. That would further add to the whole integrated recycling business," said Er Kwong Wah, chairman of Biofuel Industries.

"We're producing 1,000 to 1,500 tonnes of waste wood every day, including horticultural waste. This waste must go somewhere... The end goal is to have a perpetual business that will get rid of all the waste and at the same time, doing it in such a way that it makes business sense," he continues. - CNA/ac

S'pore Petroleum To Explore Off China

Aug 7 2007 (TODAY)

Cnooc can take up to 51% stake if oil or gas is found

Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC), the only refiner traded on the
Singapore Exchange, will explore for oil and gas with China National
Offshore Oil Corporation (Cnooc) in its first venture off the Chinese
coast.

The company will operate and own Block 26/18 in the Pearl River Mouth
Basin in the South China Sea, while Cnooc's Hong Kong-listed unit, Cnooc
Limited, has the right to take a stake of as much as 51 per cent should a
discovery be made, the Chinese oil producer said yesterday.

SPC has increased regional exploration and production since 2000 to gain
from rising oil prices.

Benchmark crude prices in New York reached a record US$78.77 a barrel on
Aug 1, helped by rising demand in China, the world's fastest-growing major
economy.

"Gaining entry into China will allow SPC to tap its vast market and
further strengthen SPC's exploration and production portfolio," SPC chief
executive officer Koh Ban Heng said.

SPC shares fell in tandem with a broad market sell-off yesterday, but they
have gained 8.3 per cent in the past two months, reaching a record $6.85
on July 23.

The drilling permit will give SPC access to an area of about 4,961 sq km.
The company, 45-per-cent owned by Keppel Corporation, will conduct seismic
surveys and drill exploration wells in the area.

The investment will not have any "material" effect on earnings per share
this financial year, SPC said.

China, the world's biggest energy consumer after the United States, is
encouraging its oil companies to step up exploration domestically and
abroad to supply an economy that expanded 11.9 per cent in the second
quarter. Cnooc is the nation's biggest offshore oil producer.

"There's great interest in exploring the potential in offshore China, so
we could keep a continuous flow of new projects for the joint exploration
of oil and gas resources," said Cnooc vice-president Zhu Weilin.

China's oil use may rise 6.1 per cent next year, the International Energy
Agency said in a July forecast.

Goldman Sachs Group and Cazenove Asia rated SPC shares a "buy" in separate
reports on July 20.

SPC raised its stake in Australia's Cue Energy Resources to 6.75 per cent
from 5.4 per cent last week. The company is drilling for oil and gas in
Indonesia with Cue Energy. - Bloomberg

Walking to the shops ‘damages planet more than going by car’

From The Times
August 4, 2007
By Dominic Kennedy

Walking does more than driving to cause global warming, a leading environmentalist has calculated.

Food production is now so energy-intensive that more carbon is emitted providing a person with enough calories to walk to the shops than a car would emit over the same distance. The climate could benefit if people avoided exercise, ate less and became couch potatoes. Provided, of course, they remembered to switch off the TV rather than leaving it on standby.

The sums were done by Chris Goodall, campaigning author of How to Live a Low-Carbon Life, based on the greenhouse gases created by intensive beef production. “Driving a typical UK car for 3 miles [4.8km] adds about 0.9 kg [2lb] of CO2 to the atmosphere,” he said, a calculation based on the Government’s official fuel emission figures. “If you walked instead, it would use about 180 calories. You’d need about 100g of beef to replace those calories, resulting in 3.6kg of emissions, or four times as much as driving.

“The troubling fact is that taking a lot of exercise and then eating a bit more food is not good for the global atmosphere. Eating less and driving to save energy would be better.”

Mr Goodall, Green Party parliamentary candidate for Oxford West & Abingdon, is the latest serious thinker to turn popular myths about the environment on their head.

Catching a diesel train is now twice as polluting as travelling by car for an average family, the Rail Safety and Standards Board admitted recently. Paper bags are worse for the environment than plastic because of the extra energy needed to manufacture and transport them, the Government says.

Fresh research published in New Scientistlast month suggested that 1kg of meat cost the Earth 36kg in global warming gases. The figure was based on Japanese methods of industrial beef production but Mr Goodall says that farming techniques are similar throughout the West.

What if, instead of beef, the walker drank a glass of milk? The average person would need to drink 420ml – three quarters of a pint – to recover the calories used in the walk. Modern dairy farming emits the equivalent of 1.2kg of CO2 to produce the milk, still more pollution than the car journey.

Cattle farming is notorious for its perceived damage to the environment, based on what scientists politely call “methane production” from cows. The gas, released during the digestive process, is 21 times more harmful than CO2 . Organic beef is the most damaging because organic cattle emit more methane.

Michael O’Leary, boss of the budget airline Ryanair, has been widely derided after he was reported to have said that global warming could be solved by massacring the world’s cattle. “The way he is running around telling people they should shoot cows,” Lawrence Hunt, head of Silverjet, another budget airline, told the Commons Environmental Audit Committee. “I do not think you can really have debates with somebody with that mentality.”

But according to Mr Goodall, Mr O’Leary may have a point. “Food is more important [to Britain’s greenhouse emissions] than aircraft but there is no publicity,” he said. “Associated British Foods isn’t being questioned by MPs about energy.

“We need to become accustomed to the idea that our food production systems are equally damaging. As the man from Ryanair says, cows generate more emissions than aircraft. Unfortunately, perhaps, he is right. Of course, this doesn’t mean we should always choose to use air or car travel instead of walking. It means we need urgently to work out how to reduce the greenhouse gas intensity of our foodstuffs.”

Simply cutting out beef, or even meat, however, would be too modest a change. The food industry is estimated to be responsible for a sixth of an individual’s carbon emissions, and Britain may be the worst culprit.

“This is not just about flying your beans from Kenya in the winter,” Mr Goodall said. “The whole system is stuffed with energy and nitrous oxide emissions. The UK is probably the worst country in the world for this.

“We have industrialised our food production. We use an enormous amount of processed food, like ready meals, compared to most countries. Three quarters of supermarkets’ energy is to refrigerate and freeze food prepared elsewhere.

A chilled ready meal is a perfect example of where the energy is wasted. You make the meal, then use an enormous amount of energy to chill it and keep it chilled through warehousing and storage.”

The ideal diet would consist of cereals and pulses. “This is a route which virtually nobody, apart from a vegan, is going to follow,” Mr Goodall said. But there are other ways to reduce the carbon footprint. “Don’t buy anything from the supermarket,” Mr Goodall said, “or anything that’s travelled too far.” dkennedy@thetimes.co.uk

Shattering the great green myths

— Traditional nappies are as bad as disposables, a study by the Environment Agency found. While throwaway nappies make up 0.1 per cent of landfill waste, the cloth variety are a waste of energy, clean water and detergent

— Paper bags cause more global warming than plastic. They need much more space to store so require extra energy to transport them from manufacturers to shops

— Diesel trains in rural Britain are more polluting than 4x4 vehicles. Douglas Alexander, when Transport Secretary, said: “If ten or fewer people travel in a Sprinter [train], it would be less environmentally damaging to give them each a Land Rover Freelander and tell them to drive”

— Burning wood for fuel is better for the environment than recycling it, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs discovered

— Organic dairy cows are worse for the climate. They produce less milk so their methane emissions per litre are higher

— Someone who installs a “green” lightbulb undoes a year’s worth of energy-saving by buying two bags of imported veg, as so much carbon is wasted flying the food to Britain

— Trees, regarded as shields against global warming because they absorb carbon, were found by German scientists to be major producers of methane, a much more harmful greenhouse gas

Sources: Defra; How to Live a Low-Carbon Life, by Chris Goodall; Absorbent Hygiene Products Manufacturers Association; The Times; BBC

Luxurious, But Eco-friendly

Energy Smart hotels save energy without stinting on quality

Lin Yanqin
yanqin@mediacorp.com.sg
Aug 4 2007 (TODAY)

KEEPING guests pampered and comfortable comes at a high price - hotels are
among the biggest energy guzzlers in Singapore, accounting for nearly 2
per cent of the total greenhouse gas emissions.

And with 2,000 rooms to be added over the next couple of years and another
4,300 by 2010 - courtesy of the integrated resorts - they are now in the
green movement's spotlight.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) has added hotels to the Energy Smart
Building labelling scheme, a two-year-old programme that recognises
establishments for being energy efficient.

"I would say the next eight months is a critical time," said Dr Lee Siew
Eang from the National University of Singapore (NUS), who headed the team
that developed the benchmarks for the scheme.

"When all the design work (for the hotels) is going on, we can use this
opportunity to put energy efficiency at the forefront of (the developers')
minds."

To qualify to be Energy Smart, hotels need to engage an accredited energy
service company to conduct an audit on their energy efficiency.

As an incentive, the NEA will fund 50 per cent of the cost of the audit,
up to a maximum of $200,000.

If the audit shows that the hotel ranks among the top 25 per cent in terms
of energy efficiency, it will be awarded the label.

The trouble, Dr Lee said, is that many hotels in Singapore are ignorant of
how energy inefficient they are.

"And some of the posh hotels told us that energy saving was not their
priority because they were luxury hotels," he said.

"They think that saving energy means compromising on quality."

But four hotels that were awarded the inaugural Energy Smart Hotel label
on Friday prove this is not necessarily the case.

The Regent Singapore, for instance, shaves about $20,000 from its monthly
utilities bill thanks to clever tweaking of current operations.

The hotel now uses a heat recovery system - using the heat emitted when
water is cooled - for the hotel's heating needs.

The system cost the hotel $500,000 to install, but it is confident that it
will recoup the amount within 18 months.

"That's what this whole scheme is about - improving energy efficiency
without compromising the guests' stay," said Ms Ann Verbeek, public
relations director of The Regent.

"We are doing all this without sacrificing luxury."

The other three hotels - InterContinental Singapore, Shangri-La Hotel, and
Changi Village Hotel - have similar heat recovery systems, as well as
energy efficient lighting systems to reduce electricity usage on lighting.

Energy Smart Office labels were also awarded to five other commercial
buildings on Friday, along with a special award for the National Library
Building.

This brings the total number of buildings under the labelling scheme to 13
office buildings, four hotels, and one library.

"There are real savings which contribute to the bottom line and the
systems are a business asset," said Dr Lee, who also heads NUS Energy
Sustainability Unit.

"The challenge is to convince developers that energy efficiency is not
just a running cost, but can become a capital gain."

Plans are in the pipeline to extend the scheme to other types of buildings
including shopping centres, hospitals and schools.

Plan For East By Year End

Aug 4 2007 (TODAY)

Abdullah says development blueprint is being drawn up by Petronas

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has said the
development masterplan for the eastern region of the peninsula will be
unveiled by the year-end, according to state media.

The blueprint for the East Coast Corridor - involving Kelantan, Terengganu
and Pahang - is being drawn up by national oil company Petronas.

"Petronas has briefed the National Investment Task Force and has submitted
the document to the Economic Planning Unit implementation committee, which
I chair," Mr Abdullah said.

"Now, preparations are being made to forward it to the rulers of the three
states," he was quoted saying in Kelantan late on Thursday by the official
Bernama news agency.

On Monday, Mr Abdullah announced a RM177 billion ($77.5) Northern Corridor
Economic Region project involving Penang, Perlis, Perak and Kedah, and
targeting the agriculture, tourism, logistics and manufacturing sectors in
these rural northern states.

Development in the eastern region will focus on the petrochemical,
handicraft and tourism sectors, Mr Abdullah said.

Kelantan, which is ruled by the opposition PAS party, has been designated
as part of the East Coast Corridor and has been allocated RM7.6 billion,
the largest single allocation ever given.

Mr Abdullah has repeatedly assured the people of Kelantan of his desire to
develop the state regardless of their political preferences, reported the
New Straits Times newspaper.

The Iskandar Development Region (IDR) in southern Johor was launched
earlier this year and it aims to attract US$14.5 billion ($22 billion)
over the next five years as part of an initiative to develop a new Asian
metropolis opposite Singapore. - AFP

New Green label for energy smart hotels

03 August 2007 (CNA)

SINGAPORE - A scheme to promote energy efficiency in hotels has been launched by the National Environment Agency (NEA) to give recognition to energy efficient hotels and promote energy efficiency by the better use of resources.

At the launch of the Energy Smart Hotel Label scheme, four hotels - The Regent, Shangri-la, Intercontinental and Changi Village - made it to the inaugural list.

Noting that recognition given to the four hotels, Dr Amy Khor, Senior Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Water Resources who was at the launch said, "I’m sure we will be able to get more on board, because they will be able to see there are really direct, tangible benefits that can be reaped with not very significant investments really, and the payback period because of the improvement in technology is getting shorter."

Studies conducted in Singapore and other parts of the world have identified hotels as one of the more energy-intensive buildings in a city.

And having acceded to the Kyoto Protocol in April 2006, the NEA’s Chief Executive Officer Lee Yuen Hee pointed out that Singapore’s commitment to combat climate change will require support from all sectors, especially the energy and carbon-intensive ones such as the hotel industry.

Speaking at the launch of the Energy Smart Hotel Label scheme, Mr Lee stressed that energy efficiency is important to maintain Singapore’s competitiveness.

"The productive use of energy, which is what energy efficiency is about, is one additional tool that Singapore businesses can make use of to stay ahead of global competition," added Mr Lee.

Hotels currently account for almost two percent of Singapore’s total greenhouse gas emissions, mainly due to electricity consumption. In the next few years, the emissions are likely to rise with higher hotel occupancy rates and the addition of more hotel rooms.

The industry expects occupancy to increase by 1,000 rooms per year over the next two years and 4,300 new rooms by early 2010 when the two integrated resorts are completed.

By recognizing the best-performing hotels in terms of energy efficiency, it is hoped that the scheme will motivate others to make improvements to their buildings. At the same time, the building owners get to enjoy a quick payback on energy efficiency investments as they can be amortized through immediate savings from the lower energy-related operating costs.

The Regent, which is among the first to receive the Energy Smart Hotel Label, was able to realize an energy reduction of about 26% in kilowatt-hour (kWh) terms after doing an energy audit. The initiative led to measures such as the replacement of diesel boilers with a new heat recovery system which saw economic returns in about 18 months.

To participate in the scheme, hotels can engage an accredited Energy Service Company (ESCO) to conduct an audit of their energy efficiency against a set of benchmarks developed jointly by the NEA and Energy Sustainability Unit of the National University of Singapore.

The benchmarks were developed after a thorough survey involving a representative sample of 30 hotels. Building physical features, operational characteristics, and data on energy use were amongst the key factors taken into consideration in designing the benchmarks of the system.

If a hotel meets all the criteria, it qualifies for the Energy Smart Hotel Label. If not, it can conduct a more detailed study, aimed at identifying areas of inefficiency and drawing up a set of realistic targets for improvement.

NEA will fund 50% of a hotel’s audit, up to a maximum of $200,000, from its Energy Efficiency Improvement Assistance Scheme introduced in April 2005 to help companies defray the cost of conducting energy audits. - CNA/ym

Petrol stations may dispense compressed natural gas

By Tan Hui Leng, TODAY
19 July 2007

The first one, on Jurong Island, cost $2.6 million to build.

The second station, coming up next year on the mainland, is likely to cost much more.

But the refuelling infrastructure for compressed natural gas (CNG) might not have to be built from scratch — and cost so much — if the government can eventually strike a deal with petroleum companies here.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) has been exploring with petrol stations the possibility of dispensing CNG at service stations, Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim told Parliament.

These include Singapore Petroleum Company, Caltex and Shell.

"The oil companies are still considering the idea of installing CNG dispensers in their service stations," said the NEA, which has been in talks with the companies since 2002.

These efforts are in addition to the government's co-funding support for private sector initiatives to build new CNG refuelling stations.

The NEA's Innovation for Environmental Sustainability Fund has helped to co-fund the start-up costs of the Jurong Island outlet, the only CNG station in Singapore so far.

Two more stations are to be operational next year, also with the help of government funding. Smart Automobile is setting up a station at Mandai by January and another at Serangoon North by the end of 2008. Earlier cost estimates of the Mandai Link station range from $8 million to $12 million, which includes the cost of the land.

If CNG refuelling facilities can be incorporated into existing petrol stations, the cost to car owners of going green could be further lowered.

Currently, the green vehicle rebate, introduced in 2001 to lower the cost differential between green vehicles and conventional vehicles, gives motorists a 40-per-cent discount on the additional registration fee up till 2009.

As of end May this year, there are 339 CNG vehicles on the road.

"I hope that moving forward, more Singaporeans will opt for CNG or other green vehicles," said Dr Yaacob, who was responding to a parliamentary question.

"As more CNG vehicles come onto the road, the demand for refuelling stations will grow and this in turn will encourage the private sector to provide such infrastructure."

CNG vehicles are environmentally friendly as they produce 76 per cent less carbon monoxide and about 99 per cent less of the cancer-causing chemical benzene than diesel-powered vehicles. - TODAY/ra

Shell fined S$25,000 for safety lapses which led to death of worker

19 July 2007 (CNA)

SINGAPORE: Petroleum company Shell has been handed a S$25,000 fine for safety lapses that led to the death of its worker.

It pleaded guilty in court on Thursday for failing to put in place work safety procedures at its offshore refinery.

35-year-old Goh Kean Lam died in an accident two years ago while carrying out chemicals replacement processes.

He succumbed to the injuries after suffering chemical burns to 17 per cent of his body.

Shell said it has looked into its processes more critically to make sure safety is not compromised.

The company could have been fined up to S$50,000 under the Factories Act. - CNA/yy

Singapore's first public CNG station to be ready by Jan 2008

By Daryl Loo, Channel NewsAsia
12 July 2007

SINGAPORE: Singapore's first-ever publicly-accessible refuelling station for compressed natural gas (CNG) is expected to start running by next January.

CNG is seen as a cleaner and cheaper alternative to petrol as it produces very little pollutants and costs about 50% less.

The station will be built and operated by Smart Automobile, which also runs Singapore's first and largest fleet of CNG taxis.

Smart Automobile expects to charge about 75 cents per litre for CNG, much cheaper than petrol, which costs from $1.60 per litre.

The new CNG refuelling station will sit on a 55,000-square-foot site on Mandai Road, just off the Woodlands Road junction.

Smart Automobile has obtained a 30-year lease to build the station, which will serve all CNG-fuelled vehicles here.

The company hopes to have four more stations by 2011, including one in Serangoon North - to be up and running by next September.

Smart Automobile says it is still awaiting regulatory approval for the second station.

All its CNG stations will operate under the name Smart Energy.

Johnny Harjantho, Managing Director of Smart Automobile, said: "We project that by the time the five CNG stations are up, there will be about 3,000 to 4,000 CNG taxis of our own, and from the public side - commercial and private cars - we estimate that there are going to be about 10,000 cars available on the road.

"If you ask me: is that number exaggerated? I think it is not. It's a chicken and egg situation. If you build more stations, then we believe more people will convert their cars, or buy the OEM CNG cars in Singapore."

There are 400 CNG vehicles on the road here, and these currently need special permission to refuel at Singapore's sole CNG station on Jurong Island.

Once the Mandai station is ready, however, refuelling on Jurong Island will no longer be allowed.

Smart Automobile estimates that the first station will cost $8 million to build, and subsequent stations about $7 million each.

To take advantage of the lower cost of refuelling, Smart Automobile intends to replace its remaining fleet of 550 diesel-run taxis with CNG cabs over the next four years.

Mr Harjantho said: "Currently, we have about 110 CNG taxis, which is about 10-15% of our entire fleet. But going forward, we are going to change all of our taxis to run on CNG.

"Green environment is the 'in' thing. Everyone's talking about being environmentally-friendly. So why not run a CNG fleet. The cost is cheaper, and also it does not pollute so much. The whole world is going in that direction."

Other countries with CNG stations include Australia, China and South Korea. - CNA/ir

Clean Coal: How to Make Rock into Biofuel

Despite a Senate battle leaving out important funding for liquid coal research in the new energy bill, gasification remains an important engineering process to our green future

By Tyghe Trimble
Illustration by Dogo [link]
June 21, 2007
Popular Mechanics

Raw coal is dirty: It's a sulfur-filled, mercury laden, sooty, black rock. And before it can even be used, it must be scrubbed clean-or, with new technologies, converted to a liquid or gas. Liquid coal has been getting a lot of attention in the Senate of late, but bipartisan arguments were cut short this week when the promise of $10 billion in "clean coal" funding was cut from the new energy bill.

The big idea is to make coal into a liquid biofuel that could fill our cars. Many argue that this fuel would reduce our dependence on foreign oil, although others point to it as an unacceptable replacement for diesel due to its high output level of greenhouse gases. One thing's for sure: the rock-to-gas transformation remains in the preliminary research stages, with little funding and not much public understanding. Here's how that process, known as the Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC), converts coal into synthetic gas and energy-a 20-percent more efficient makeover of the dirty ore you may soon find only in a naughty kid's stocking:

1. The heart of gasification lies in (shocker) the gasifier, which takes coal, water and air and applies heat under high pressure to make "syngas"-a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. Minerals in the fuel (i.e., the rocks, dirt and other non-carbon-based material) separate, leaving the bottom of the gasifier either literally in ashes or as an inert, glass-like slag-materials that can be reused for materials such as concrete and road fill.

2. The crude syngas leaves the gasifier piping hot and full of contaminants (hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, mercury and nasty particulates, to name a few). A combination of heat exchangers, particulate filters and quench chambers cool the syngas to room temperature and remove most of the solids.

3. Syngas then passes through a small bed of charcoal to capture mercury, removing over 90 percent of this toxic metal (click here to learn more). Used charcoal containing captured mercury leftover is sent to a hazardous landfill for disposal.

4. The final step for cleaning in gasification is the removal of sulfur impurities in acid gas removal units, where the impurities are converted into sulfuric acid or elemental sulfur-both valuable byproducts.

5. A combustion turbine then reheats the clean syngas, dilutes it with nitrogen for control of NOx (the greenhouse gas that makes smog) and burns it, driving a generator to make electricity.

6. Leftover heat from combustion is recovered in a Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG), which generates steam to power the internal turbine. Some of that air is compressed and can be channeled back to the air separation unit for oxygen, which is then reused within the gasifier.

7. The steam generated in the HRSG and the steam made in Step 1 combine to drive a steam turbine for even more power production. The steam then cools and condenses into water, which pumps back into the steam generation cycle. In an IGCC plant, two-thirds of the total electricity produced comes from the gas turbine and one-third from the steam turbine.

Big bang revived

By Christie Loh, TODAY
20 June 2007

Within the next two years, the Government will completely loosen its grip on three of Singapore's power companies, in line with a long-delayed liberalisation of the electricity market.

Foreigners will be allowed to hold as much as 100 per cent of the utilities assets — a prospect that has sparked uproars in other countries over national security fears. But industry analysts and insiders here see no cause for concern.

In a statement yesterday, Temasek Holdings said it would kick off the multi-billion-dollar sale of PowerSeraya, Senoko Power and Tuas Power from September, with completion targeted for the end of next year or early 2009.

It was not the first airing of such divestment plans. The liberalisation process for the energy market started in 1995, with the Government saying in 2000 that it was lifting foreign ownership caps to sell the trio of power generation companies (gencos) which account for about 80 per cent of electricity produced here. But weak market sentiment and disputes over gas supplies saw the divestment repeatedly postponed.

This time, "the conditions are conducive", said Temasek's managing director of investments Wong Kim Yin. Singapore's economy is set for continued strong growth, the past year has seen much buying interest, and recent legislative changes set the stage for liberalisation, he said at a media briefing.

Each genco is reportedly worth $2 billion to $3 billion. Mr Wong declined to name the interested parties. But the likes of United States-based Intergen, Tokyo Electric Power Company and Malaysia's YTL Corp have popped up in media reports. Possible local buyers are Keppel Corp and SembCorp Industries, which both run existing gencos, and Temasek-linked CitySpring Infrastructure Trust.

The sale may be by a tender or via initial public offers (IPO), Mr Wong said, with the first genco likely to be offered through a tender process. Temasek's financial advisors are Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse.

"For the first genco, we are more inclined towards a trade sale. We think that will better meet our objectives than an IPO," Mr Wong told Channel NewsAsia. "At the moment, we are not inclined to retain any residual stake in any of the gencos, so a trade sale would meet that objective better."

But will Singapore's security of supply be compromised should a foreign player pick up the stakes?

This was answered in 2000 by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, which said: "Energy security will not be a problem because foreign owners will not be able to walk away with their power plants. Our workers will still be here to operate them in an emergency."

Also, the sale documents could contain provisions for intervention to resolve any supply problems, said Mr Jason Feer, vice-president of energy intelligence provider Argus Media Limited.

"If you get a company that's politically motivated, then you could end up in a difficult situation. But if you get companies that are in the generating business, then they really have no incentive to play politics with the power supply," Mr Feer told Today.

Other countries' experiences have shown that security fears may be exaggerated. Senoko Power chief executive officer Roy Adair noted that Germans held the bulk of Britain's electricity market. New shareholders could introduce outside expertise and knowledge, he added.

Overall, the sale is "positive", said PowerSeraya.

For consumers, the changes are not expected to alter prices. This is because the three gencos are already in full competition. Mr Wong sees "no reason to believe that the change in ownership itself" would have an impact on SP Services, which buys electricity on behalf of all households, or industrial consumers.

Asked if Temasek would lay down sale conditions such as limits on retrenchments, Mr Wong said the agreements between the unions and the management would remain in place after the sale.

"The rights of the employees will not be changed or diminished in any way. These gencos have undergone restructuring in the past few years so they're operating very efficiently," he said of the trio, which employ a combined total of 900 people.

If they are so efficient, why divest the trio? "Sometimes it's a perception issue," said Tuas Power CEO Lim Kong Puay.

The Union of Power and Gas Employees (Upage) said in a statement last night that the recently-concluded collective agreements signed with the three gencos will be binding on the new owners for the next three years, thus safeguarding worker interests.

If any lay-offs result from the sale of the plants, "Upage will ensure that workers are fairly compensated, and their length of service will be preserved", said union general secretary R K S Nachiappan. - TODAY/sh

Related Articles:
Temasek to sell its power generation companies from September
By Wong Siew Ying, Channel NewsAsia
19 June 2007

SINGAPORE: Investment company Temasek Holdings plans to sell three of its wholly-owned Singapore power generation companies (gencos), starting from September.

These three gencos, PowerSeraya, Senoko Power and Tuas Power, will be divested over the next 12 to 18 months.

The deals are expected to be completed by the end of next year or early 2009.

Together, the three gencos account for 80 percent of Singapore's power generating capacity, producing about 3,000 megawatts of electricity each.

Temasek Holdings said it has received good interest for the three gencos over the past year and would be selling the companies one by one.

The first is likely to be offered through a tender process and Temasek will assess the bids based on commercial merit.

It has hired banking advisors Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse to facilitate the sales process.

Wong Kim Yin, Managing Director, Investments, Temasek Holdings, said: "In terms of the first genco, we are more inclined towards a trade sale. We think that will better meet our objectives than an IPO (initial public offering). At the moment, we are not inclined to retain any residual stake in any of the gencos, so a trade sale would meet that objective better."

But Temasek is not ruling out other options, such as selling shares through an IPO for the other two gencos.

Temasek has declined to give a dollar value for the gencos, but reports have estimated that each company could fetch between S$2 billion and S$3 billion.

The long-awaited sale is in line with the government's aim to liberalise the electricity market in Singapore.

To increase competition, there will be no restrictions on foreign ownership of the gencos.

Temasek said this change in ownership is unlikely to have an impact on electricity prices.

Mr Wong said: "Changing ownership by itself is not expected to have any impact on consumers because they will continue to be served by SP services, which will continue to buy from the wholesale market and enjoy the benefit of competition among these gencos."

Temasek said it is an optimal time to sell because of favourable market conditions and the huge demand for electricity.

Moreover, there is also a gas regulation framework in place to ensure there is a steady and orderly supply of gas and power.


- CNA/so

"Green" Helpline to Cut Consumers' Carbon Footprint

UK: June 20, 2007
Story by Jennifer Hill
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
Source

LONDON - A new service designed to help consumers reduce their carbon footprint aims to boost the number of "green" homes in Britain by half a million within a year.

Greenhelpline.com, which went live on Tuesday, allows people to search environmentally friendly energy tariffs and source local food producers.
The site -- developed by environmentalist Alex Lambie and energy price comparison service energyhelpline.com -- hopes to convert 500,000 homes to electricity from renewable resources within the next 12 months.

Currently, just 150,000 households are on green energy tariffs, of which there are around 17 at present.

Switching to green electricity can cut the average household's annual carbon footprint from energy consumption to four tonnes from six, and save them up to 145 pounds per year, the Web site says.

However, green energy is often more expensive than electricity from non-renewable resources and Lambie concedes that such cost savings will generally only be available to those who have never switched provider.

There are some 25 million householders in the UK -- half of whom have never switched energy supplier.

People already on competitive tariffs will pay an average 10 percent more for "green" energy, while those on the cheapest deals -- such as British Gas' online "Click" tariff -- could pay up to 14 percent more.

"For a slight (cost) increase -- as a worst case scenario -- you can go green and have an immediate positive effect on the environment," Lambie told Reuters.

Users are able to rank green electricity deals by the potential CO2 reduction, price, service rating or fuel mix.

They can also search for local food producers -- such as farm shops, markets, delis, box schemes, "pick your own" sites and bakeries -- within a 50 mile radius of their home.

Once the site is fully developed, consumers will be able to buy local produce through the site, with a proportion of revenues being invested in schemes to help local farmers.

"There's so much confused messaging about what 'going green' is: there's an overload of information, and it's often contradictory," said Lambie.

"These days, there's also so much noise about the 'nanny state' and the way the country is run.

"But here are two really simple things you can do -- ones that will have real measurable effect."

A number of big companies are also being offered the tool to help their customers and staff become more environmentally friendly.

Greenhelpline.com -- which will make a flat rate of commission of 40 pounds per energy switch, from which around two pounds will be profit -- will split revenues 50/50 with the companies who sign up.

This money will then go into a scheme run by greenhelpline.com to give cash-back, vouchers and discounts to those who switch to a greener way of life.