Singapore is located in Southeast Asia, it is a small country with a population of 5.637 million (World Bank United Nations, 2022). I lived there for 7 years of my life, it is my second home and I find a personal connection to this place. In high school, I learned a lot about the environment in Singapore, and one of the topics that came up often in class was the energy mix of Singapore. Such that they lack a good energy mix and seem to be relying on neighbouring countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia. Singapore is a developed country known for its modern skyline and culturally rich diversity. Understanding energy sources is crucial for shaping sustainable policies, mitigating environmental impacts, and ensuring reliable access to energy for current and future generations. The significance of energy in Singapore is underscored by its ongoing reliance on external sources, particularly Malaysia, for both water and energy. As Singapore continues to seek sustainable energy solutions, addressing its dependence on neighbouring countries remains a pressing concern. This is also important due to the sustainability element, and ensuring Singapore develops more renewable sources to produce energy. In this blog post, I will delve into the intricate landscape of Singapore’s energy sources, examining the existing challenges, proposed solutions, and the overarching importance of transitioning towards sustainable energy practices for the nation’s future resilience and environmental stewardship. I interviewed a first-year student at AUC who previously lived in Singapore. I found it intriguing to gain personal insights into her understanding of energy sources and dynamics in Singapore and her associated opinions. This topic caught my interest for my blog post as it revisits a subject I encountered in high school, prompting me to delve deeper through independent research. Additionally, exploring a country I have lived in and intimately understand provides an exciting opportunity for further learning and exploration.
Singapore is known as being a tiny country, sometimes you cannot even see it on a full-size world map. Therefore, the country also faces several physical constraints that impact its energy usage. This includes the obvious being limited land area, as Singapore is a small island city-state with limited area, which restricts the deployment of large-scale renewable energy projects like solar farms or wind turbines. This is also due to the rising population, there is limited space. Singapore has one of the highest population densities globally (Our World In Data, 2024). This means that there is an increase in energy demand for transportation, cooling, and infrastructure and therefore it adds pressure on the energy supply. Another issue that Singapore faces is the lack of natural resources. Compared to other countries, Singapore lacks natural resources such as fossil fuels or hydropower. This dependence on imported energy makes the country vulnerable to supply disruption and price fluctuation in the global market. More than 95 percent of Singapore’s electrical supply comes from natural gas. Most of this is piped from Malaysia and Indonesia (Rather et al, 2024). This poses a key problem as six of the existing gas contracts with Indonesia and Malaysia are due to expire between 2018 and 2029. Having contracts like this can be difficult because it is vulnerable to geopolitical tensions. Depending heavily on another country for energy leaves Singapore susceptible to any political or diplomatic issues that may arise between the two nations. As well as a more logistical perspective of supply disruptions, if any disruptions in the supply chain occur, whether due to natural disasters, or political reasons, could lead to shortages or price spikes, impacting Singapore’s energy security (Ho, 2018). It also creates limited control over energy policies. Another problem that Singapore has is water scarcity. It faces water scarcity issues which are linked to energy use. The country relies heavily on energy-intensive desalination and wastewater treatment processes to meet its water needs, adding to overall energy demand (ISEAS, 2007). This shows that although Singapore is developing rapidly and finding alternative ways to be a more sustainable country in general, it still faces some problems with energy.
The concept of an energy mix is having various sources of energy and not relying on a single source. It includes fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, and coal), nuclear energy, waste, and many types of renewable energy (biomass, wind, geothermal, water and solar) (United Nations, 2024). Diversifying the energy mix is essential for resilience because it relies on imported oil and natural gas. Through projects like solar energy, Singapore hopes to become less dependent on Malaysia for energy imports. Singapore’s environment is ideal for solar panels, therefore solar energy in particular has a lot of potential (Rather et al, 2024). Increasing the amount of solar infrastructure offshore, in industrial zones, and on roofs might have a significant impact on the electricity system (Ho, 2018). To solve the intermittent problems with renewable energy, research and development expenditures for energy storage technologies are also essential. Singapore may promote technical innovation, improve energy security, and lessen its environmental effects by adopting solar power and other renewable energy sources.
In the end, Singapore is facing physical limitations, geopolitical ties, and environmental demands at a pivotal point in its search for sustainable energy alternatives. With a dense population and few land resources, Singapore is a small island city-state that confronts several obstacles in its efforts to diversify its energy mix and lessen its reliance on energy imports from neighbouring nations. Gas contracts with Malaysia and Indonesia are about to expire, which emphasises how urgent it is to switch to alternative energy sources like solar power. Notwithstanding these obstacles, Singapore’s conducive solar energy climate offers encouraging prospects for using renewable resources and boosting energy security. Singapore can lead the way towards a more robust and sustainable energy future by funding energy storage technology R&D and encouraging creativity in the renewable energy industry. Singapore must address its energy vulnerabilities to maintain consistent availability of energy, reduce its negative environmental effects, and solidify its position as a global leader in sustainable development. Singapore may steer towards a more sustainable energy landscape by implementing strategic policies and coordinating its efforts. This will encourage resilience, innovation, and environmental stewardship for future generations.
Figure 1: This figure illustrates Singapore’s climate action plan. The focus being on carbon tax.
Figure reference: Energy. (n.d.). SG101. https://www.sg101.gov.sg/infrastructure/case-studies/energy/
References
Energy perspectives on Singapore and the region. (2007). ISEAS Pub. https://doi.org/10.1355/9789812305794
Energy. (2019). Sg101.Gov.sg. https://www.sg101.gov.sg/infrastructure/case-studies/energy/#:~:text=Currently%2C%20more%20than%2095%20per
Ho, S. S., Looi, J., Chuah, A. S. F., Leong, A. D., & Pang, N. (2018). “I can live with nuclear energy if…”: Exploring public perceptions of nuclear energy in Singapore. Energy Policy, 120, 436–447. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2018.05.060
Peimani, H. (Ed.). (2011). The Challenge of Energy Security in the 21st Century : Trends of Significance (1st edition.). Energy Studies Institute, National University of Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1355/9789814311625
Rather, K. N., Mahalik, M. K., & Mallick, H. (2024). Do renewable energy sources perfectly displace non-renewable energy sources? Evidence from Asia–Pacific economies. Environmental Science and Pollution Research International, 31(17), 25706–25720. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-32820-1
Ritchie, H., Mathieu, E. and Roser, M. (2024) Which countries are most densely populated?, Our World in Data. Available at: https://ourworldindata.org/most-densely-populated-countries#:~:text=The%20five%20most%20densely%20populated,with%201%2C342%20people%20per%20km%C2%B2. (Accessed: 28 April 2024).
Schönsteiner, K., Massier, T., & Hamacher, T. (2016). Sustainable transport by use of alternative marine and aviation fuels—A well-to-tank analysis to assess interactions with Singapore’s energy system. Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, 65, 853–871. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2016.07.027
Singapore Energy Conference 2006 : summary report. (2006). Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. https://doi.org/10.1355/9789812307279
Energy, Climate & Sustainability 
I guess it only makes sense that Singapore is having issues with energy due to the lack of land. Singapore is merely a city and does not have the luxury of land that most of the other countries have. However I wonder, how effective solar energy is for Singapore, yes they do receive a large amount of energy from the Sun, but they still have very limited space, so it doesn’t seem very scalable to me. Also because at this point in time solar panels and the harnessing of solar energy is not very efficient. I think until we are able to effectively harness the Sun, Singapore will have to remain heavily reliant on other countries for energy merely because they do not have the physical capacity to do much else. Though I hope that maybe this will urge them to innovate and advance our knowledge of utilising solar energy.
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Hi Laure, thank you for this blog post!
In the past few weeks, where there weather here in the Netherlands has been fluctuating between hot and cold, you mentioned to me that you grew up with the AC always switched on. I had never even considered that houses in the Netherlands generally don’t even have an air conditioner. However, it does show how important energy supply is for Singapore. Carbon taxes are a hot topic right now, so it’s really interesting to see how Singapore is planning on implementing this into their energy plans.
All in all, I did not know much about Singapore or their energy sources and your blog post has introduced me to both of these topics in a clear and interesting manner!
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