[top: The solar-powered charging station is located at Singapore Polytechnic and can charge up four electric scooters a day.]

By Judith Tan

The first electric vehicle (EV) charging station that harnesses energy solely from the sun was launched on Monday.

It traps sunlight using four roof-mounted panels to generate an average of of 3.15kwh a day - enough to charge four electric scooters a day.

Located at the Singapore Polytechnic, the $30,000 standalone station is an expansion of Greenlots, a network of charging spots for EVs being built here by Singapore-based green energy company Zeco Systems.

There are currently four Greenlots: at Ikea's outlets in Tampines and Alexandra Road, at the Insead campus and at the Swiss Club. But these tap into Singapore's main power grid.

While Singapore is keen to embark on viable green technologies, the enthusiasm for EVs seems to be taking a long time to transform into reality.

Only three electric scooters, each costing about $8,000, have been sold since they were launched here in January.

"Consumers are not buying EVs because of the lack of places to charge them," said Mr Jan Croeni, managing director of Zeco Systems.

"Infrastructure is also not being set up because of the low demand for EVs," he added, calling it a "chicken-and-egg issue".

Agreeing, chairman of the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS) Edwin Khew cited the example of cars using compressed natural gas (CNG).

"CNG is cheaper but the problem was a lack of infrastructure. There were only two filling stations until the new one opened at Old Toh Tuck Road near Jurong East recently. Before it did, the lines of cars waiting to fill up were long," he said.

There are currently about 4,200 CNG vehicles here.

Mr Croeni said his company hoped to launch more Greenlots as part of Singapore's Green Plan 2012.

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