Page 12 - AsiaElec Week 33 2021

AsiaElec RENEWABLES AsiaElec
Singapore to issues $3bn green bond to fund sustainable projects
SINGAPORE
SINGAPORE’S Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu said this week that it was the first infrastructure project to be devel- oped by a public body to be financed by green bonds.
The NEA said that the cash raised would sup- port sustainable projects that yield environmen- tal benefits such as resource recovery and more efficient land use.
The Tuas Nexus Integrated Waste Manage- ment Facility is to be the first such project and will be the region’s most advanced and efficient, said NEA chief executive Luke Goh.
It will “treat separate waste streams with greater energy efficiency and reduce Singapore waste resource management’s overall carbon footprint”, he added.
The NEA said that it would publish the details of its first green bond in future.
The Tuas Nexus project consists of two mega facilities - the Tuas Water Reclamation Plant, which will be managed by national water agency PUB, and the Integrated Waste Management Facility (IWMF) that will be run by NEA.
Together, they make up Singapore’s first inte- grated water and solid waste treatment project, and will be ready from 2025.
The project would optimise land use, as the integrated development saves up to 2.6 hectares of land, compared with building two standalone facilities.
“The establishment of NEA’s green bond framework to finance Tuas Nexus IWMF and other environmentally sustainable projects, marks another milestone in our stewardship journey. Tuas Nexus IWMF will be the region’s
most advanced, efficient and integrated solid waste treatment facility that treats separate waste streams with greater energy efficiency and reduces Singapore waste resource management’s overall carbon footprint,” said the NEA’s Goh.
Tenders amounting to more than $5 billion for civil, mechanical and electrical engineering works for Tuas Nexus will be called progressively over five years, NEA and PUB said in 2018.
NEA’s issuance of green bonds will “help develop green finance solutions and markets”, supporting the country’s vision to become a lead- ing centre for green finance, said Fu.
“This is a major milestone to catalyse the flow of capital towards sustainable development, and green our economy,” she added at an event to launch the Plastics Recycling Association of Singapore.
Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat’s said earlier this year that the government wanted to issue green bonds for selected public infrastruc- ture projects, including Tuas Nexus.
Some $19 billion of public sector green pro- jects have been identified, he added.
Other projects to promote green energy include importing green power from neighbour- ing Malaysia.
Tuas Power recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with NEFIN, a leading solar PV developer, to bid for the right to import 100 MW of zero-carbon electricity import from Malaysia.
The bid is part of the Singapore government’s efforts to improve energy security by gaining access to regional power grids in Southeast Asia.™
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 33 18•August•2021