Singapore releases new emissions targets for 2035, on track to reaching net zero by 2050

SINGAPORE on Monday (Feb 10) committed to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to between 45 million and 50 million tonnes (Mt) by 2035, down from around 60 Mt in 2030.

This new climate target for 2035 puts Singapore on track to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050, as the planned decline in emissions is on a linear trajectory.

Singapore’s new climate targets were submitted to the United Nations (UN) on Feb 10, the official deadline for countries to submit their 2035 targets. So far, only 11 countries have submitted their new pledges, including the UK, US, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates.

Singapore’s total greenhouse gas emissions in 2022 was 58.59 Mt of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2 eq). CO2eq is a term used as a measurement of total greenhouse gases emitted.

The Republic contributes about 0.1 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.

“The lower bound of 45 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2eq) keeps us on a linear path to our net zero target in 2050, in line with international expectations,” said the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) in a statement on Feb 10.

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“The range target (of 45 to 50 MtCOeq) takes into consideration the reality that as an alternative-energy disadvantaged island state, Singapore’s pace of decarbonisation depends heavily on developments in nascent mitigation technologies, and international collaboration,” NCCS added.

Under the UN’s Paris Agreement, countries are required to submit their climate targets every five years, with every target more ambitious than the previous one.

These pledges are called nationally determined contributions (NDC), and they outline the climate action to be taken by each country in hopes to meet the Paris climate pact’s goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 deg C above pre-industrial levels – which experts say is fast getting out of reach.

The global average temperature was 1.55 deg C above pre-industrial levels in the whole of 2024, marking the first time an individual year has exceeded 1.5 deg C.

“Singapore will continue to work on the range of mitigation measures available to us and explore other mitigation options to drive further emissions reductions. These solutions have the potential to grow the green economy, create jobs, and generate new opportunities in a low-carbon world,” added NCCS.

Countries, including Singapore, had finalised the first round of climate targets after the Paris Agreement was adopted in 2015. Since then, Singapore has updated its NDC two times – in 2020 and 2022.

Under its first pledge in 2015, Singapore said it would become greener economically and reduce the amount of greenhouse gases emitted to achieve each dollar of gross domestic product by 36 per cent from 2005 levels, by 2030.

This refers to reducing emissions intensity by 36 per cent, that Singapore has committed to ensuring economic growth while emitting less.

In 2020, the country said it will peak its emissions at 65 MtCO2eq around 2030.

Peaking emissions refers to the point when a country’s greenhouse gas emissions reach their highest level and then begin to decline consistently, in the aim to reach net zero by mid-century. In other words, it refers to when a country’s contribution to climate change reaches its maximum yearly level.

At the 2021 UN climate change talks in Glasgow, nations were asked to revisit and strengthen their 2030 targets by the end of 2022.

So in 2022, Singapore announced that it will reach peak emissions earlier, and reduce it to around 60 Mt in 2030, and get to net zero by 2050.

At end-2024, it was revealed that the Republic intends to peak its emissions at 64.43 Mt in 2028, before coming down after that. Peaking closer to 2030 indicates that the emitting sectors here have a longer time to transition to low-carbon technologies.

Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean, who also chairs the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change, will elaborate on Singapore’s approach towards climate action and 2035 targets at the upcoming 2025 Committee of Supply debate.

Melissa Low, a climate policy observer and research fellow at the NUS Centre for Nature-based Climate Solutions, said it is encouraging to see how Singapore’s 2035 targets have been informed by the first global stocktake held in Dubai at the 2023 UN climate talks.

The global stocktake refers to a process that allows countries to review how to address their shortcomings to raise global climate ambition. In 2023, the stocktake revealed that global carbon emissions had exceeded interim targets required to meet the 2050 objective of the Paris Agreement.

“The (targets) make clear exactly how Singapore is addressing the key global stocktake outcomes, particularly in the areas of energy and transport.” THE STRAITS TIMES