Week in ASEAN: HDB to Install Solar on 527 Blocks in Singapore; B.Grimm Gets $28 Million Loan for Solar Plant in Cambodia and More

Housing & Development Board to Install Solar Systems on 527 Blocks in Singapore

The Housing & Development Board (HDB) of Singapore has planned to install solar PV systems on all 527 eligible HDB blocks in the Tanjong Pagar town. The photovoltaic systems are expected to harness clean energy by 2025, adhering to the town council’s 10-year master plan to be more energy-efficient. In its recently released 2021 sustainability report, the Tanjong Pagar Town Council said, the blocks are projected to achieve net-zero energy consumption on average in common areas, once the installation is complete. The solar photovoltaic systems on HDB blocks, which are under the Governments’ SolarNova program, jointly led by HDB and the Economic Development Board (EDB), will have a total solar capacity of 26.5 MWp, equivalent to powering 6,600 four-room HDB flats. HDB is home to more than 80% of Singapore’s population, having completed more than 1 million flats and houses across 24 towns and 3 estates. HDB’s 10-year plan “Green Towns Programme” aims to harness green energy and bring sustainable living to all HDB towns.

B.Grimm Power Gets $28 Million Loan for Solar Plant in Cambodia

B.Grimm Power plc has secured $28 million in a syndicated loan from Thailand’s top financers to undergird its solar energy project in Cambodia. The financial facility is provided under the 15-year accord signed by Kasikornbank, Exim Thailand, and Bangkok Bank to fund the 39 MW solar plant in Cambodia’s Banteay Meanchey Province operated by Ray Power Supply Co., Ltd (RPS), a wholly-owned subsidiary of B. Grimm Solar Power 1 Co., Ltd. “RPS’s ground-mounted solar power facility is considered a success for being completed on schedule amid many restrictions, including the pandemic’s effects and severe floods in the construction area throughout 2020,” He added. The solar power plant went online in December 2020 and began supplying electricity to state-run utility Electricite Du Cambodge (EDC)’s grid under a 20-year agreement, became the first solar energy project in Cambodia to secure a firm power supply guarantee from the government.

AC Energy Begins Construction of 283 MW Solar Farm in Zambales

AC Energy (ACEN) begins construction of its 283 MW solar farm located in San Marcelino, Zambales. The company, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Santa Cruz Solar Energy, Inc. as project owner, has tapped Power Construction Corporation of China Ltd. and PowerChina Philippines Corporation as the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractors for the project, said the company statement. The project will be the largest solar farm in the country, capable of producing over 421 GWh of renewable energy per year and eliminating 287,796 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually. ACEN aims to help address the potential power shortages in the country as energy demand continues to grow, with project completion expected by the first half of 2023. ACEN’s San Marcelino solar farm will feature the latest solar technologies such as east-west oriented panels and string inverters to capture solar radiation more efficiently. The solar farm sits on approximately 300-hectares of unutilized land covered by lahar, effectively converting the area to a sustainable energy source, and has an expansion potential of up to 700 MW.

Solar-Powered Irrigation System for Two Towns in Lanao Del Sur, Philippines

The first-ever solar-powered irrigation system (SPIS) for two towns in Lanao del Sur Province has been launched recently. The province located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), Philippines is facing a prolonged water shortage problem for irrigation. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR) of BARMM has turned over this $0.2 million (P10-million) project in the two neighboring upland towns of ‘Butig’ and ‘Sultan Dumalondong’ in Lanao Del Sur, with the Task Force Bangon Marawi (TFBM), a government inter-agency task force group. MAFAR–BARMM Minister Mohammad S. Yacob said that the project has solar panels and 20 horsepower (HP) generation capacity, competent enough to accumulate 3.5 cubic meters of water per minute with 660 cubic meters that can supply water for 50-70 hectares of farmlands. The solar irrigation system seeks to address the farmer’s water shortage problem and help them in boosting their rice production. The project is expected to be a model for uplifting the livelihood of farmer communities in Lanao Del Sur, as well as in the whole Bangsamoro Region. The primary beneficiaries of these solar-powered irrigation pumps are the farmers of the villages of ‘Cabasaran and Sumalindaw’ in the town of Butig, and ‘Malalis’ villages in the municipality of Sultan Dumalundong.

Vietnam And Denmark Continues The Energy Partnership Programme (DEPP)

The Government of Vietnam, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Dang Hoang An and Mr. Kim Højlund Christensen, Ambassador of Denmark to Vietnam, representing the Government of the Kingdom of Denmark signed the Agreement between the two Governments on Development Cooperation in the Vietnam-Denmark Energy Partnership Program for the period of 2020 – 2025 (DEPP 3). The ceremony was held in in-person combined with virtual form. The overall objective of the Program is to assist Vietnam in building a low-carbon development roadmap for the energy sector, contributing to concretizing Vietnam’s commitment to national-determined contributions (NDC) under the Paris Agreement on climate change, improve NDC targets and strengthen related solutions by 2025. Three specific objectives of the Program include: (i) Enhance capacity on energy sector planning and infrastructure construction policy regulation, integration of renewable energy sources, including offshore wind power development and energy-saving technologies, which are economically effective solutions to fulfill NDC commitments while ensuring national energy security; (ii) Develop and complete a legal framework and flexible solutions for power system operation to support a safe and efficient transition towards clean energy with an increased share of renewable energy sources; (iii) Develop mechanisms and policies to promote economical and efficient use of energy in the industrial sector, improve capacity building and amend the legal framework on economical and efficient use of energy at the national level and effectively enforce the legislation on economical and efficient use of energy at the provincial level.

EDPR Buys Majority Stake in Sunseap at S$1.1 Billion Valuation

The world’s leading renewable energy company, EDP Renováveis (EDPR) acquired a majority stake in Sunseap for 1.1 billion Singapore Dollars ($815 million), to reinforce its presence in the Asia-Pacific region. The acquisition will prove EDPR’s global leadership position in renewable energy platform to tap growth in the Asia Pacific through Sunseap that is fully complementary to EDPR’s footprint, geographically, and technologically. The transaction enables EDPR to establish its presence in the APAC region with 540 MW of operational and under-construction solar projects, 127 MW of secured capacity, and a portfolio including 5.5 GW of renewable projects at different stages of development. In addition to the deal, EDPR has given consent to share its knowledge and expertise of wind energy with Sunseap and create joint ventures with the company on energy storage and green hydrogen projects.