CDL to look into expanding electric-vehicle charging infrastructure

IN A move towards a low-carbon future, City Developments Limited (CDL) will look into expanding electric-vehicle charging infrastructure for its new residential and commercial developments, as well as its existing managed properties.

These efforts will support "the transformation of the local urban mobility landscape", the property developer said in its 2020 integrated sustainability report released on Monday.

Its efforts in this space appear to go as far back as 2012, when it installed a communal electric-vehicle charger in the basement carpark of City Square Mall, under an electric vehicle test-bedding programme run by government agencies.

Since then, the property developer has also partnered BlueSG, an electric-car sharing provider, and charging facilities provider Greenlots in providing carpark lots in its commercial properties with charging stations; its properties include Republic Plaza, Tagore 23 Warehouse, Central Mall and City Square Mall.

Last year, CDL joined hands with SP Group to provide direct current fast chargers at Republic Plaza.

"The recent Singapore Budget 2020 announcement to increase adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and phase out internal combustion engines by 2040 validates our early efforts in enabling the accessibility of EV chargers to the public," the company said in the report.

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The property developer also disclosed that it has saved more than S$28 million in energy expenses across eight of its commercial properties between 2012 and last year, thanks to energy-efficient retrofitting.

Since 2004, CDL has retrofitted all its managed buildings by upgrading chiller plants, introducing motion sensors, installing energy-efficient lighting and recladding facades.

Overall, the group last year attained a 38-per-cent reduction in carbon emissions intensity from base-year 2007, meeting its interim 2019 target. CDL added that it is on track to achieve its target of a 59-per-cent reduction by 2030.