The Singapore government is calling for proposals from consultants to establish a global framework to recognise renewable energy certificates (RECs) from cross-border clean power deals in Southeast Asia.
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The republic’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) has released a tender, closing 24 March, to conduct a seven-month long study to develop a framework that can be recognised as a valid form of clean energy procurement by international bodies like RE100 and the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP), Eco-Business has learnt according to sources.
Currently, cross-border RECs are not recognised under RE100 and GHGP outside of single markets for electricity trading, like the European Union or the United States. This prevents such RECs from being used to make certain corporate claims – such as being 100 per cent renewable energy-powered, which businesses that join RE100 have committed to – or counted towards firms’ Scope 2 emissions reductions from the energy they use.
Last week, British lender Standard Chartered – an RE100 member – stated in its latest sustainability report that it may not be able to meet its 2025 target of using only renewable energy, citing “market constraints” and “lack of renewable energy options in some markets within Africa and the Middle East, like Bahrain, Botswana, Ghana, Iraq and Tanzania.
“We also have some countries where we purchase renewables through ‘cross-border’ grid feeds, which is recognised for our net zero target, but not recognised by RE100,” the bank said in the annual report.
According to MTI’s tender released on the government procurement website GeBiz on Wednesday, the consultancy study should include inputs from international standard setting bodies, companies who intend to buy RECs from cross-border power import projects as well as international government bodies.
Specifically, MTI suggested engaging with GHGP, RE100, International Tracking Standard Foundation – which operates the globally recognised I-REC system – as well as big tech companies like Google, Microsoft, Apple and Amazon. It also listed Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM RI) and national power utility PLN, alongside Malaysia’s Ministry of Energy Transition and Water Transformation (Petra), as “relevant energy regulatory authorities in Asean member states” to solicit views from.
One of the key deliverables stated in the tender document was a “gameplan for regional or international recognition” of the framework, in particular from RE100 and GHGP. Based on environmental disclosure platform CDP’s working paper, which MTI cited in the tender, one of the key conditions for recognition would be ensuring that the electricity is physically sold together with the green certificates they represent.
Last December, Malaysia delivered its first 50 megawatts of cross-border clean power coupled with RECs into the city-state, in support of the Asean power grid initiative to connect the region’s currently fragmented electricity systems.
Ollie Wilson, head of RE100, told Eco-Business that it “has been actively engaging with the Singaporean government to ensure there is a shared understanding of the importance of aligning its future cross-border electricity trading (CBET) REC framework with the RE100 technical criteria.
Given that the credibility of renewable energy claims is essential to corporates, Wilson added that RE100 has been supporting the Singapore government to understand what is needed to ensure that claims made under the newly developed CBET framework will be credible.
“By developing a credible framework, Singapore – and any other governments looking to do the same – can help to attract investment from existing and future RE100 members into their growing renewable electricity capacity,” he said. “The conversations are ongoing and we look forward to seeing a positive outcome to help deliver a renewables-focused energy system for the region.”
When the country first announced plans to work on the REC framework with “like-minded” partners last October, it did not indicate when a finalised standard should be expected. MTI’s press release then stated that the timeline was “still being worked out and will be announced once finalised.” The government agency has not given an update on the timeline for selecting the consultant and completing the study.
In response to Eco-Business’ queries, an MTI spokesperson confirmed that the government has “begun engagements with stakeholders” on the new framework and will “continue these engagements” as it gets developed.
