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3.154. (...) The Government committed SGD 19 billion in R&D funding from 2016 to 2020 in furtherance of the sixth five year science and technology plan, the Research Innovation Enterprise 2020 Plan. With support from cross-cutting academic research, manpower, and innovation and enterprise programmes, the Plan focused on four strategic technology domains: (...) urban solutions and sustainability, (...).

4.4. (...) CO2 emissions started declining in 2017 in absolute terms; this may suggest an increasing greening of the Singaporean economy in general and a possible decoupling trend between growth, which remained strong, and emissions.

4.6. From 2015 to 2018, total energy supply grew by 19%. Chart 4.2 details Singapore's energy supply by source. (...) Natural gas provides about a quarter of the energy supply, while the share of coal and renewables remains marginal; solar energy supply grew five-fold during the period, from a very low base.

4.7. In the framework of the Paris Agreement, Singapore submitted its enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution in March 2018 and its Long-Term Low Emissions Development Strategy in March 2020 to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Singapore committed to peak emissions at 65 million tonnes of carbon-dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) around 2030; it aspires to halve emissions from the peak to 33 MtCO2e by 2050 and to achieve net zero emissions as soon as viable in the second half of the century.

4.8. Singapore introduced a carbon tax on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through the Carbon Pricing Act that came into force on 1 January 2019. The carbon tax forms part of Singapore's comprehensive suite of mitigation measures to reduce emissions; the tax rate is currently set at SGD 5 per tonne of carbon-dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) from 2019 to 2023. The tax is applied uniformly to emissions from all sectors, including those from the manufacturing, power generation, and water and waste management sectors, with direct reckonable GHG emissions of 25,000 tCO2e or more annually. This covers around 80% of national emissions.

4.9. The carbon tax level and trajectory (post-2023) will be reviewed by 2022. To support companies during the transition, the Government is prepared to spend more than the expected carbon tax revenue of about SGD 1 billion in the first five years to help companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and power-generation companies (gencos), improve their energy and carbon efficiency by adopting greener and cleaner technologies and practices. In addition to making changes in the energy sector, Singapore has taken action across the economy, such as switching to cleaner-energy vehicles and improving energy efficiency in buildings. To encourage energy efficiency in the industrial sector, the Energy Conservation Act was revised in 2017 to stipulate more energy management practices, which include minimum energy efficiency standards for common industrial equipment and systems.

4.10. (...) The only coal-fired electricity plant in Singapore employs a mix of clean coal (with low-ash and low-sulphur) and biomass to produce steam that is required by industries, as well as electricity. This co-generation process is in general more efficient than the separate production of steam and power. Measures have been put in place by environmental agencies to ensure that the facility meets environmental standards.

4.18. Due to natural conditions (absence of rivers, low average wind speeds, nature of the subsoil, and size and use of the territory), it is not viable to develop hydro-power, tidal energy, nuclear energy, wind energy, or geothermal energy based on current technologies. As a result, solar, biomass, and biofuels are the only feasible options for Singapore's renewable energy supply. Renewable energies are essentially used for electricity generation.

4.19. (...) Today, 95% of Singapore's electricity is generated using natural gas. In addition to accelerating solar deployment, Singapore is also studying emerging technologies such as hydrogen for power generation in the longer term. Due to the lack of alternative energy options, Singapore is also looking into leveraging regional power grids to overcome geographical constraints and access other clean energy sources. Chart 4.4 provides the energy sources mix for the generation of electricity.

4.20. Electricity consumption grew by 8.9% between 2015 and 2019. In 2018, the Energy Market Authority (EMA) launched the Genco Energy Efficiency (EE) Grant Call, which encourages gencos to deploy equipment or technologies that are more energy efficient or competitive.