Press release
HDB awards tender to install solar panels in 45 blocks
by Ong Dai Lin 04:46 AM Sep 16, 2011SINGAPORE
Forty-five Housing and Development Board (HDB) residential blocks in Punggol will be fitted with solar panels by the middle of next year in the island’s first solar leasing project.
The solar power generated will be used in common areas, to power lifts, corridor and staircase lights, and water pumps, which make up about 10 per cent of the total electricity used within a block.
In awarding the tender to Sunseap Enterprises, the HDB said yesterday the company would design, finance, install, operate and maintain the two megawatt-peak solar photovoltaic systems.
The HDB will cover 30 per cent of the initial start-up costs, or S$3.28 million, while the remaining costs will be recovered from the Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council through the solar power that is generated and consumed over the next 20 years. The town council will pay for the solar power consumed “at a preferential rate that is not higher than retail electricity tariff rate”, the HDB said. It envisaged that, over time, the cost of solar power will come down as technology improves and greater economies of scale are achieved.
Dr Cheong Koon Hean, the HDB’s chief executive officer, said yesterday that Punggol, as Singapore’s first eco-town, is the “ideal location” for the HDB to expand its solar photovoltaic installations through solar leasing.
“The solar leasing model presents a win-win situation for all parties,” she added. “Energy usage can be optimised with lower usage of power from the grid, thus reducing our carbon emissions in the long term. Private enterprise can be harnessed to maximise solar generation without additional cost to the town council.”
The project is part of the HDB’s $31-million, five-year scheme to test-bed solar energy in 30 precincts. Previously, the HDB bought the solar panels and hired contractors to install and maintain them. The current business model of solar leasing is one in which the HDB buys only the electricity.
Yesterday, Sunseap also rolled out a solar lease programme for commercial building owners. The company said freehold and leasehold commercial building owners interested in installing solar panels on their rooftops would not have to worry about paying the high upfront costs or the cost of maintaining the solar panels. The programme allows customers “to lock in competitive rates for electricity over the course of the lease period”, Sunseap added.
