Singapore tracking advanced nuclear technologies but has no plans to pilot

SINGAPORE is keeping close tabs on nuclear technologies that can be used to decarbonise the power grid as they mature, keeping alive the possibility of nuclear energy to support Singapore’s energy needs by 2050.

Despite that, there are no plans to pilot any of these technologies here as there are challenges with Singapore taking the first plunge given its status as a densely populated city-state, a senior executive with the Energy Market Authority (EMA) said on Thursday (Oct 19).

Chia Meng Hwee, deputy director of EMA’s energy technologies department, said in response to an audience question by The Business Times: “We’ve not made any decision. We’re still in the exploratory stage. Singapore is such a small country... In the world today, nobody puts a conventional plant right next to a city. If you were to do so, it is something that is very challenging.”