It's International Energy Week in Singapore and a conference is taking place that focuses on the development of an energy grid connecting Southeast Asia.
Singapore has an energy problem — one that’s familiar to residents of Hawaiʻi.
Fuel is imported and domestic sourcing of energy is challenging. That's why the government wants to develop renewable energy on a faster track.
The United States and Singapore have just completed a feasibility study on creating a regional power grid for Southeast Asia.
It's expensive: The cumulative cost would top a trillion dollars.
Backers say it could also boost economic growth and clean energy use among those using it.
A pilot project is underway, starting small. A total of 100 megawatts of hydropower is created in Laos, transmitted to Thailand, on to Malaysia and then to end users in Singapore.
The Electric Power Supply Association says that's enough electricity to run as many as 100,000 homes.
The study is backed by the Net Zero World Initiative, a U.S. Energy Department program started three years ago.
In a separate announcement this week, Singapore committed to importing a much bigger shipment of clean energy by way of an undersea cable from northern Australia.
That will involve nearly 2 gigawatts of solar energy — enough electricity to power more than a million homes.
