Solar-power boost for 45 more Punggol blocks

MORE Housing Board blocks in Punggol are going green with solar power by the middle of next year.

Seven HDB blocks have already been fitted with rooftop solar panels to generate electricity, and 45 more blocks will be similarly fitted.

This test-bed project, announced by HDB yesterday, is in line with the Government's plan to make living in Singapore more environmentally friendly and sustainable.

The solar-panel systems used by these estates will - for the first time in Singapore and South-east Asia - be on a lease basis from their developer.

This means that HDB and the Pasir Ris-Punggol Town Council will lease the systems and not have to pay the high cost upfront of installing them, which is estimated to be $11 million for this project.

The town council will not have to worry about system maintenance, too. Home-grown solar manufacturer Sunseap Enterprises will take on those responsibilities.

The firm has been awarded the tender for the project for 20 years and the town council will pay Sunseap monthly power - generation fees.

The electricity generated will be used to power electrical services in common areas, such as lift operations, corridor and staircase lighting, and water pumps.

HDB said that Punggol residents do not have to worry that the higher cost of solar power - about 30 per cent more than prevailing electricity rates - will be passed on to them.

This is because the town council has signed an agreement with Sunseap to enjoy a discount on the costs of electricity generated by solar power, which makes them similar to prevailing electricity rates.

For this project, HDB will cover 30 per cent of the initial start-up costs, which amounts to about $3.28 million.

Mrs Cheong Koon Hean, chief executive of HDB, said the project will help Singapore reduce carbon emissions in the long term and contribute to the country's research on solar-power generation.

She added that HDB is looking into expanding the project to another 70 blocks in Punggol.