Singapore on Wednesday unveiled one among the world’s largest floating solar panel farms, covering an area corresponding to 45 football pitches and generating enough electricity to power the island’s five water treatment plants.
The project is an element of the land-scarce Southeast Asian city-state’s efforts to satisfy its goal of quadrupling its solar energy production by 2025 to assist fight climate change.
Situated on a reservoir in western Singapore, the 60-megawatt peak photovoltaic (PV) farm was built by a completely owned subsidiary of Sembcorp Industries (SCIL.SI).
According to a joint statement from the corporate and Singapore’s national water agency PUB, the solar farm could help reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 32 kilotonnes a 12 months, which is comparable to taking 7,000 cars off the road.
According to the project presentation, floating panels, unlike conventional rooftop solar panels, perform 5% to fifteen% higher resulting from the cooling effect of water and should not affected by shading solid by other buildings.
Electricity generated from 122,000 solar panels on the 45-hectare (111.2-acre) site should make Singapore one among the few countries on the planet with a water treatment system powered entirely by renewable energy.
To address concerns concerning the environmental impact of such projects, PUB said an assessment was carried out before installing solar panels to make sure there can be no significant impact on wildlife or water quality.
“It has been carefully designed to improve airflow and allow sunlight to pass through the water (to reach aquatic life),” said Jen Tan, regional director at Sembcorp Industries.
The solar panels are designed to last for 25 years, and drones might be used for maintenance.
There are currently 4 other floating solar panel projects underway in Singapore.
