Sembcorp open Singapore’s first solar farm with an integrated rainwater harvesting system. The combined solar power of the Sembcorp Tuas Solar Farm is 17.6MWp. It is located on two sites. The solar farm, estimated to cover close to 10 hectares of vacant land, is modular and flexible. It uses mobile solar panels, hybrid SPPG substations and a mobile transformer.
- Sembcorp Tuas Solar Farm I: 16.1MWp solar energy system in Tuas Bay Lane
- Sembcorp Tuas Solar Farm II: 1.5MWp solar energy system in Tuas West Drive
A total of 33,580 solar panels have been installed across both sites, providing renewable energy channelled to the grid. The system is expected to produce about 22,025-megawatt hours of power annually, which is enough renewable energy to power about 4,681 four-room HDB flats for a year. This will also help to avoid over 8,900 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year, equivalent to planting close to 150,000 trees.
Singapore’s First Solar Farm with an Integrated Rainwater Harvesting System
The Sembcorp Tuas Solar Farm I at Tuas Bay Lane is unique and incorporates a first-of-its-kind integrated rainwater harvesting system in Singapore. In addition to the generation of solar energy, this system also collects and treats up to 170,000 cubic metres of rainwater annually, which is equivalent to the amount required to fill 68 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Rainwater is collected via a drainage network built between the solar panel arrays and connected to an underground water storage tank that has been constructed using a geocellular system. The modular nature of geocellular systems means that they can be tailored to suit the specific requirements of any site.
The treated rainwater, which has been neutralised and free of contaminants and odour, will primarily be for non-potable use to further clean the solar panels on-site, as well as for solar panel cooling purposes. Solar panels are known to yield about 2-5% higher output energy when exposed to a water-based cooling system.
Supporting Singapore’s Green Plan 2030
Sembcorp is pursuing a focused strategy to expand its renewable energy portfolio, and to play a part in creating a sustainable future. This project is part of Sembcorp’s strategic plan. This project also shows the company’s ability to support Singapore’s Green Plan, as well as the nation’s goal of deploying at least 2GWp solar energy by 2030.
