SINGAPORE: On Wednesday (July 14), Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong officially opened a 60 megawatt-peak (MWp) floating solar photovoltaic (PV) system on Tengeh Reservoir, describing the project as “one giant stride forward towards environmental sustainability.” The Sembcorp Tengeh Floating Solar Farm covers 45 hectares, or around 45 football fields, and comprises 122,000 solar panels that are designed to last 25 years.
According to a joint press statement from the national water agency PUB and Sembcorp Industries, it is also one of the world’s largest inland floating solar PV systems.
“The start of the solar farm’s operations marks a significant step toward long-term energy sustainability in water treatment, making Singapore one of the few countries in the world with a 100 percent green waterworks system while contributing to the national goal of quadrupling solar energy deployment by 2025,” they said in a statement.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong presided over the opening ceremony. Grace Fu, the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment, was also present. Mr Lee stated in his speech that it was “critical” for Singapore to continue to identify solutions to meet its energy demands without relying on fossil fuels.
He continued, “Innovations like floating solar farms will help us transcend our physical limits.”
“I’m hoping that this project will help to promote our solar and renewable energy industries and open the path for more of these facilities to be established in the area. As we migrate to a low-carbon society, this will be a significant step forward in terms of environmental sustainability.”
The Sembcorp Tengeh Floating Solar Farm covers 45 hectares, or around 45 football fields, and comprises 122,000 solar panels that are designed to last 25 years. (Photo courtesy of Matthew Mohan)
According to Sembcorp and PUB, the solar farm will generate enough electricity to operate Singapore’s five local water treatment plants, offsetting around 7% of PUB’s yearly energy demands.
This is the equivalent of powering 16,000 four-room HDB flats and decreasing carbon emissions by 32 kilotonnes per year, or the equivalent of removing 7,000 automobiles from the road.
PUB chief executive Ng Joo Hee remarked, “With this floating solar power plant, which we consider to be one of the largest in the world, PUB makes a huge step towards enduring energy sustainability in water treatment.”
“Solar energy is abundant, clean, and green, and it is critical to PUB’s and Singapore’s carbon footprint reduction.”
Wong Kim Yin, group president and CEO of Sembcorp Industries, called the solar farm the company’s “crown jewel.”
“Sembcorp has over 3,300 megawatts of renewable energy assets around the world as the leading homegrown renewable energy player,” he said.
“We are dedicated to supporting the Singapore Green Plan and have the track record and competencies to do so.”
READ: The Tengeh Reservoir floating solar farm, hailed as one of the world’s largest, has begun construction.
PUB and EDB initiated a testbed at the reservoir in 2016, and building of the floating solar PV system, which covers about one-third of the entire area of the reservoir, began in August 2020.
“A decade ago, we came up with the idea of constructing a floating solar farm. Because we have year-round brilliant sunlight for solar power, we were exploring for ways to harvest solar energy at scale… Unlike wind or hydropower, which are both unreliable and unavailable in this area, “Mr. Lee stated. “As the cost of solar cells decreased, solar power became more viable and appealing to us, so we took advantage of any available area to install solar panels. We put them on the roofs of buildings and on abandoned state lands. However, we lacked large-scale land plots to expand our solar power installations. As a result, the concept of a floating solar farm appealed to us because it allowed us to fully utilize the huge surface area of reservoirs while also providing them a second purpose.” The testbed’s performance – which outperformed a standard rooftop solar power system by up to 15% due to the cooler reservoir climate – gave the farm the “assurance” to expand. “This makes Singapore one of the few countries in the world with a totally green waterworks system producing clean water with 100% clean energy, which is yet another great success in our ‘water story,'” Mr Lee continued. READ: As the purchasing and selling of solar energy becomes a reality, Singapore may be able to make even more progress toward its solar goal. Between 2015 and 2018, an environmental impact study was conducted on the site, which included biodiversity surveys, water quality monitoring and modeling, as well as meetings with nature groups. According to PUB and Sembcorp, results from a testbed put at Tengeh Reservoir in 2016 showed no noticeable change in water quality or substantial influence on adjacent fauna. According to all parties, the Sembcorp Tengeh Floating Solar Farm was meticulously built to have the least influence on the reservoir’s water quality, flora, and fauna. “Adequate spaces between solar panels were added to promote ventilation and allow enough sunshine to reach aquatic life. Additional aerators were also installed to keep the reservoir’s oxygen levels stable.” High-density polyethylene (HDPE) is used to make the floats, which is a certified food-grade material that is recyclable, UV-resistant, and corrosion-resistant. PUB and Sembcorp will continue to monitor the reservoir closely and take appropriate measures to safeguard biodiversity and water quality, in addition to having a thorough environmental management and mitigation plan, according to the press statement. Lower Seletar Reservoir and Bedok Reservoir both have floating solar PV projects in the works. They’re expected to be finished this year. Environmental studies for a 100MWp project at Kranji Reservoir and a 6.7MWp project at Upper Peirce Reservoir are also underway./n
