Technical Report Draft 1: Introduction + Background Information + Problem Statement + Purpose Statement

1. Introduction: 

This proposal has been developed in response to the call for proposal made by National Parks Board (NParks) for implementing sustainable solutions in generating electricity.

1.1 Background information

Singapore is set to be the global leader and innovation hub for smart and sustainable building solutions in Asia. It is aiming to ‘greening’ 80% of its buildings by 2030 through the S$50 million Green Mark Incentive Scheme (Min, 2021). Imports of natural gas have increased steadily, which reflects the increasing demand for energy in Singapore (Energy Market Authority, 2019). 95% of Singapore’s electricity is produced from natural gas (Open Electricity Market, n.d.), supplied through pipelines from Malaysia and Indonesia (Energy Market Authority, n.d). However, Indonesia intends to discontinue gas exports to Singapore by 2023 (Eloksari, 2020) while Malaysia’s gas supply is subject to similar diplomatic and economic concerns. The country’s efforts to reduce its pipeline gas demands have increased imported liquefied natural gas, consequently incurring higher costs to store and regasify it. (The Energy Company, 2018). The increasing demand for energy and lack of supply is a cause of concern for a country that has been considered a global business hub.

With the country’s ever-growing economy and breakthrough in technology, Singapore is always looking for opportunities to invest in new research and technology that contributes to its growth. Pavegen introduces piezoelectric cells in kinetic tiles that harvest kinetic energy when people walk on them. Electricity harnessed from the footsteps transforms the kinetic energy into electricity to power street lamps and signages. The use of kinetic tiles to harness electricity at parks is an efficient power source to generate renewable energy for the lamp posts along Singapore's park connectors. 

Pavegen has installed approximately 20 kinetic tiles along the central crossing between London's Olympic Stadium and the Westfield Stratford City Mall. It claims that the recycled rubber paving slabs harvest kinetic energy from footsteps and stores it for up to three days in an on-board battery (Webster, 2011). This project expects about 30 million customers in the first year. Laurence Kemball-Cook, a graduate who developed the prototype in university, stated that the energy generated from the project would be enough to power about half of the outdoor lighting needs of the mall (Webster, 2011). He also added that each step on the kinetic tiles would be enough to keep an LED-powered street lamp lit for 30-seconds. 

Implementation of kinetic tiles in the national parks of Singapore would allow the National Parks Board (NParks) to save energy and electricity costs. Independently generating electricity through clean energy methods reduces the carbon emissions generated to power the lamps. This is in line with NPark’s goal of ‘promoting green as a lifestyle’ (National Parks Board, 2020). Climate change resulted in negative consequences and led to innovations in renewable energy technologies. The more common renewable energy currently would be solar and wind energy. International Energy Agency (IEA) states that natural gas demand is expected to progressively recover in 2021 as consumption returns close to its pre-crisis level in the mature market, causing a surge in electricity inflation rates “2021-2025: Rebound…” (2020). With the implementation of kinetic tiles in Singapore’s parks, it allows NParks to tap on alternative energy sources and reduce gas production. By reducing gas production, Singapore will be less reliant on its gas imports, lowering its carbon emission and production costs, further diversifying Singapore's energy supply.

1.2 Problem Statement

Currently, the National Parks Board (NParks) has not adopted kinetic tiles for the pedestrian walkways in their parks in Singapore. By implementing this technology, NParks would save electricity used to power lamp posts thereby illustrating innovative green technologies and demonstrating a strong sense of corporate social responsibility.

1.3 Purpose Statement

The purpose of the report is to propose to the National Parks Board (NParks) to install kinetic tiles along Cloud Forest towards Satay By The Bay to harness renewable energy for electricity at the park connector.

References

2021-2025: Rebound and beyond – Gas 2020 – Analysis. (2020, June). International Energy Agency. https://www.iea.org/reports/gas-2020/2021-2025-rebound-and-beyond

An investigation into energy generating tiles : Pavegen. (2011). UBC Library Open Collections. https://open.library.ubc.ca/cIRcle/collections/undergraduateresearch/18861/items/1.0108425

Eloksari, E. A. (2020, February 7). Indonesia to stop gas exports to Singapore in 2023. The Jakarta Post. https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/02/07/indonesia-to-stop-gas-exports-to-singapore-in-2023.html

EMA : Piped Natural Gas and Liquefied Natural Gas. (n.d.). Energy Market Authority. https://www.ema.gov.sg/Piped_Natural_Gas_and_Liquefied_Natural_Gas.aspx

Energy Market Authority. (2019). EMA | Singapore Energy Statistics - Energy Consumption. EMA. https://www.ema.gov.sg/singapore-energy-statistics/Ch03/index3

Min, A. H. (2021, February 10). Singapore unveils Green Plan 2030, outlines green targets for next 10 years. CNA. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-green-plan-2030-targets-10-years-14161356

National Parks Board. (2020). Mission and History. https://www.nparks.gov.sg/about-us/mission-and-history

Singapore Electricity Market Overview | Open Electricity Market. (n.d.). Open Electricity Market. https://www.openelectricitymarket.sg/about/market-overview#:%7E:text=Today%2C%20about%2095%25%20of%20Singapore’s,via%20its%20member%20SP%20PowerGrid)