3 Primary Schools in Punggol Start Tapping on Solar Power as Part of Carbon-Neutral Push

SINGAPORE: Three primary schools in Punggol have begun tapping on electricity generated from solar panels as Singapore moves towards its target for at least 20 per cent of schools to be carbon-neutral by 2030.

Rooftop solar systems were installed at Horizon Primary School, Compassvale Primary School and Edgefield Primary School at the end of April, said Sunseap Group on Tuesday (Jun 1).

The systems will generate 397.44 kilowatts peak (kWp), 190.44 kWp and 389.16 kWp of energy respectively – enough to power 297 four-room flats when combined, said the local solar energy solutions provider.

Sunseap said it was also installing solar panels at six other schools: Anderson Primary School, Kranji Secondary School, Catholic High School (primary), Methodist Girls’ School (primary and secondary) and Tampines Primary School.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said progressively equipping schools with solar panels was one way it planned to reach the 2030 carbon-neutral target.

The target was first announced in February with the launch of the Singapore Green Plan.

MOE also said it was working towards a two-thirds reduction of net carbon emissions from the schools sector by 2030.

As of March, about 130 schools were on the SolarNova programme with solar panels progressively installed on their rooftops.

Then Minister for Education Lawrence Wong told Parliament that MOE will extend the programme to cover most of the remaining schools in the coming decade.

The school installations carried out by Sunseap were part of the fourth solar leasing tender awarded to the company under the SolarNova programme in 2019. The company said it is set to install more than 170,000 solar panels across public housing blocks and government sites between 2020 and 2022.

“Sustainability has become increasingly important and there is no better place to instil environmental consciousness in future generations than through schools,” said Sunseap co-founder and CEO Frank Phuan.

Singapore has set a national target of halving its 2030 peak greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and achieving net-zero emissions “as soon as viable” in the second half of the century.

Source: channelnewsasia