Group govt tender for solar panels

Group govt tender for solar panels

SINGAPORE - Solar panels could soon be seen in army camps, schools and more Housing Board blocks.

HDB will call a tender next year for such technology. Possible government agencies which may take part are the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) and the Ministry of Education (MOE).

It will be the first tender to aggregate demand across government agencies for solar photovoltaic panels, which convert sunlight to electricity.

Mindef is looking at installing them on the rooftops of camps, while MOE might use them on the rooftops of schools, National Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan said in a blog post yesterday.

HDB's bulk tender means several government agencies can benefit from lower costs.

Mr Khaw said HDB is taking the lead in the tender because it has the greatest experience in installing solar panels here.

There are now 176 HDB blocks with solar panels - the figure will rise to 300 next year. They help to power lifts and corridor lighting, at a time when town councils are being hit by rising energy costs.

In March, the Government said it wanted to raise adoption of solar energy to 350 megawatts-peak (MWp) by 2020, or about 5 per cent of annual electricity demand.

janiceh@sph.com.sg


Get MyPaper for more stories.

This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.