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- The Singapore GreenGov path to Net-Zero: Singapore's decarbonising & climate mitigation plan.
The Singapore GreenGov path to Net-Zero: Singapore's decarbonising & climate mitigation plan.
A review of Singapore's renewable energy & low-carbon strategies to fulfil our 2035 NDC & Net-Zero by 2050.
The Transmutation Principle Newsletter & Natasha Lye
March 31, 2025
Last year, Singapore released their GreenGov report and proposed net-zero strategies. The Power sector of Singapore contributes 40% of the country’s total emissions. In this article, we’ll take a look at how Singapore plan to transit towards lower-carbon energy supplies and reduce national emissions.
Cross-Border Low-Carbon Electricity Imports
Singapore plans to import low-carbon electricity from renewable energy projects.
By 2035, the country aims to import 6GW of clean electricity to meet one-third of its electricity needs.
Conditional approvals have been granted for projects from Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Vietnam. These efforts will contribute to building an interconnected ASEAN Power Grid.
Singapore also pledged its commitment to the Green Energy Zones and Corridors Pledge at COP29. We anticipate that around one-third of our projected electricity demand can be fulfilled by electricity imports by 2035.
Hydrogen Innovation
Singapore is also prioritizing research into hydrogen technologies to diversify our energy mix, amidst solar energy maximisation and imports .
The National Research Foundation’s Decarbonisation Programme focuses on hydrogen use, carbon conversion for biofuels, and ammonia-ready fuel cells for power generation.
In July 2024, the National University of Singapore launched its Centre for Hydrogen Innovations (CHI) to help translate hydrogen technologies into real-world applications.
Singapore is currently working on assessing our readiness and feasibility of adopting low-carbon hydrogen but no quantitative target set in the National Hydrogen Strategy.
While we have kickstarted small-scale pathfinder projects, technologies are still required to enable low carbon hydrogen supply chains and end-use applications remain nascent or unavailable at scale.
There remains inherent difficulties in the production, storage, and transportation of hydrogen, which impede its commercially viable expansion.
Nuclear?
As recently shared at Budget 2025, nuclear remains a considerable option for low-carbon sources of energy.
There have been growing regional interest in nuclear power, and with Singapore’s limited land and natural resources for renewable energy - solar, wind and hydro.
Singapore had previously determined that conventional nuclear technologies were not appropriate for the country; however, it has continued to monitor advancements in this area to ensure that its options remain open.
Since then, there have been advancements in nuclear technologies with possibilities for small modular reactors (SMRs) that are safer than conventional, large plants.
For the time being, Singapore is not making any decisive moves to adopt nuclear power, but is cooperating with other countries who have deployed SMRs to explore and learn from their capabilities and experiences with nuclear technologies.
Currently, the government has set aside an additional S$129 million of research funding under Low-Carbon Energy Research (LCER) Funding Initiative to support the development of low-carbon technologies including hydrogen.
Additionally, they added another $5 billion into its existing Future Energy Fund that was announced during Budget 2024, with an initial $5 billion investment.
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)
Singapore is investing in CCS technologies to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors.
As part of the Sustainable Jurong Island plan, the country aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 2 million tonnes per year through CCS in the industrial sector by 2030.
Singapore has appointed a lead consortium, S Hub, including Shell and ExxonMobil, to assess the feasibility of an end-to-end CCS project.
Reducing Individual Carbon Footprints
Low-carbon public transportation:
Singapore’s "Walk-Cycle-Ride" (WCR) initiative aims to expand the rail network from 270 km to 360 km by the early 2030s, ensuring 8 in 10 households are within a 10-minute walk from a train station.
Additionally, the country’s cycling path network will grow from over 600 km to 1,300 km by 2030.
Low-carbon household energy:
Additionally, under the Enhanced Climate Friendly Households Programme (CFHP) launched in 2020 to encourage greater involvement in climate action, eligible HDB households will now receive $400 to buy energy and resource-efficient products.
Low-carbon food sources:
To boost local food security and reduce food-related emissions, one can now easily identify and purchase fresh, locally produced vegetables, eggs and fish through the SG Fresh Produce (SGFP) Logos initiative by Singapore Food Agency (SFA).
Apart from local produce and diversifying our food import sources, as well as continuously enhancing food safety and hygiene, we also acknowledge the buzz around alternative protein innovation.
In late 2020, Singapore was the first country in the world to approve the sale of cultivated meat.
The market penetration of plant-based meat in Singapore was only 0.056% of total meat sales in 2020, despite high investments in the sector. See report insights by GFI here.
We hope that in tandem with the efforts of boosting food security, the world can transit towards more plant-based diets, to reduce animal-based food consumption which are more emission-intensive, a diet which most Singaporeans are dependent on.
There is rightly a growing awareness and body of research that our food choices significantly impact our carbon footprints and it goes beyond eating local.
As per this article by World in Data, eating locally only minimally reduces your carbon footprint and a more significant impact would be to find an alternative to high emission foods such as red meats and dairy products.
Read more about a planet-based diet here, a concept by WWF to help reduce the barriers and stigmas around eating better for the planet!
Reducing Non-CO2 Emissions
Singapore is also working to reduce non-carbon emissions, including methane and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).
Around one-third of Singapore’s total carbon emissions are direct emissions from the refining and petrochemicals sector, which accounts for most of the activities on Pulau Bukom and Jurong Island.
As part of the Singapore Green Plan 2030, Jurong Island will gradually be transformed into a sustainable Energy & Chemicals park, that operates sustainably and makes sustainable products.
The Sustainable Jurong Island Plan looks to increase output of sustainable products and increase carbon abatement via renewable energy and carbon capture, storage and utilisation (CCUS).
Jurong Island is home to over 100 global companies in refining, olefins production, and chemical manufacturing and is a key competitive hub for Singapore, and undeniably a big piece to the emissions reduction puzzle.
The country ratified the Kigali Amendment in 2022, aiming to phase out HFCs by regulating imports.
Singapore has banned high Global Warming Potential refrigerants in appliances and requires proper recovery and treatment of spent refrigerants.
Technicians must also be trained and certified to minimize emissions during servicing.
Although Singapore is not a major emitter of methane, the country reduces methane from landfills by incinerating waste and wastewater sludge.
At COP26, Singapore signed the Global Methane Pledge to support global methane reduction efforts.
In conclusion, Singapore’s public sector is making steady progress toward its environmental sustainability goals.
Through initiatives like GreenGov.SG and a focus on innovative technologies and sustainable practices, the country is laying the groundwork for a greener future.
While it has been a challenge to expedite the transition to a net-zero pathway, the commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050 remains a key priority especially as Singapore remains a key leader for the region in the transition, aiming to be a leader and key enabler for others to collaborate with and follow suit.
Loved this article? Here’s how our work aligns with Singapore’s net-zero strategies and sustainability priorities:
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