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To stay competitive, businesses will need to reduce energy consumption, direct carbon emissions, and the use of carbon-intensive goods and services.

The Singapore Carbon Pricing Act

The 2019 introduction of the Carbon Pricing Act (CPA) marked Singapore as the first country in Southeast Asia to establish a carbon price. The CPA requires any facility emitting more than 25,000 tCO2e annually to pay S$5/tCO2e.

The CPA considers emissions from direct fuel combustion as well as from Industrial Processes and Product Uses (IPPU) such as the production of CO2 from steam methane reforming used in ammonia or hydrogen production.

Setting the taxable emissions threshold at 25,000 tCO2e allows Singapore to target a relatively low number of the country’s C&I facilities while still addressing roughly 80% of its national GHG emissions. By addressing the majority of the nation’s heavy polluters with an easy-to-understand tax, the CPA could prove to be a more effective policy measure than a highly complex carbon cap-and-trade mechanism.

Tax to Increase

The price per tonne of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e) is set to go through steep price increases in the coming years:

• S$25/tCO2e in 2024
• S$45/tCO2e in 2026
• and potentially between S$50-$80/tCO2e by 2030

The 2022 CPA update offers businesses time to assess, plan, and execute strategies to reduce their carbon emissions and thus lower their tax liability.

Demonstrating Strong Intention for Social Good

Singapore’s carbon price commitment showcases the nation’s determination to decarbonise in a meaningful way. According to Singapore’s National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS), the government will not receive additional revenue from this carbon price increase. Rather, the money will go towards supporting businesses and further efforts to promote decarbonisation — such as grants and tax incentives for ESG reporting — as the country advances its transition away from carbon.

Additionally, the CPA will allow for 5% of a business’s taxable emissions to be offset via certified international carbon credits. This gives businesses access to a wide range of options to mitigate their tax liability, yet the CPA still places overwhelming emphasis on reducing on-site emissions, which will compel businesses to reduce their actual carbon emissions and create a positive impact in Singapore.

Creating a Carbon Reduction Strategy

Decarbonising industry and the built environment is in the public’s best interest and increasingly aligns with corporate agendas. Economists and business leaders alike have stressed the importance of expanding the price of carbon to accelerate global decarbonisation.

Effective decarbonisation requires a deeper understanding of baseline conditions and how to profitably transition away from fossil fuels. With many potential pathways in an ever-changing energy landscape, keeping up with current trends, technologies, and policies can be a daunting task.

A corporate carbon reduction strategy is the best way to achieve your goals at the lowest cost. The following diagram shows what needs to be taken into account.  A simplified approach is to be considered:

1. Increase energy efficiency
2. Electrify as much as possible
3. Buy renewable energy
4. Offset the remaining carbon emissions

How Businesses can Decarbonise through Energy Efficiency

There are no one-size-fits-all solutions to decarbonise the industry. There is however a universal principle that can be applied across all sites in which reducing energy waste means less energy use, fewer emissions and that businesses will save money at the same time. This is a ‘no regrets’ strategy.

How Electrification and Renewables Decarbonise Business

Beyond improving energy efficiency, plants can also undergo electrification to transition away from equipment and machinery that burn fuel on site. For instance, a natural gas water heater can be replaced with an electric heat pump, or a traditional furnace can be replaced with an electric one. In addition to helping transition away from burning fossil fuels, electrified equipment typically comes with fewer maintenance costs.

When purchased electricity is produced from clean, renewable sources with minimal carbon intensity, such as wind and solar power, the electrification process can significantly reduce a business’ overall emissions.

Current studies suggest that electrification could transition roughly 50% of the fuel that global industry uses for energy to electric-powered operations. This includes processes requiring low-temperature heat (≤ 100°C), such as food preparation, to industrial activities like steam reforming that require high-temperature heat up to 1,000°C.

The remaining fuel in the industry is often natural gas. There is an increasing amount of renewable gas available in the network, for example between 40%-50% of Denmark and Germany’s piped methane gas is from renewable sources.

Certificates and Carbon Offsets

Northmore Gordon will Guide You Through Profitable Decarbonisation

As a full-service Consultant, Northmore Gordon has energy experts prepared to guide businesses through all phases of their decarbonisation journeys to ensure a successful and profitable transition.

Northmore Gordon assists with the design and implementation of a carbon reduction strategy, which includes but is not limited to:

1. Develop the carbon strategy
2. Implement energy efficiency
3. Electrify fuel use
4. Create and competitively buy priced renewable energy and high-quality carbon offsets

We help businesses design and implement carbon reduction strategies and long-term roadmaps so that they can meet corporate goals and stay ahead of the changing landscape. This can include alignment with and commitment to the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), a robust framework strategy developed to keep the global temperature rise well under 2° Celcius from pre-industrial levels. In addition, Northmore Gordon helps businesses capture available grants, certifications, and incentives to make the process as profitable and streamlined as possible.

The world recognizes the threat of climate change and the risk of continued fossil-fuel dependence. Acceleration of decarbonisation is needed, and policy measures such as Singapore’s Carbon Policy Act showcase that more and more countries are making definitive steps to reaching a net-zero carbon economy. With an energy partner like Northmore Gordon, your business can incorporate our energy policy and engineering expertise to demonstrate leadership in sustainability and build a thriving business as the world undergoes this pivotal energy transition.

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Reliance on price comparison websites

Price comparison websites are great if you are a domestic customer or small business user. However larger users need tailored pricing and tailored solutions. You can use your load size to your advantage with direct negotiation.

Not understanding the options

There are more than just fixed price or discount of tariff contract options. These are by far the most common, but electricity retailers have a suite of other contracts that could save you up to 50% off the regulated tariff. The retailers don’t often advertise these options as they make more money from the standard contracts and customers don’t always understand the more complex pricing structures. Knowing what options are available can help you choose one with the best risk profile for your business.

Re-contracting according to your contract expiry date

The standard procurement approach to purchasing electricity is to wait until the contract expiry date is approaching and go to market then. But electricity prices can be quite volatile and keeping an eye on the market and contracting during lower price periods can save you thousands of dollars.

Not negotiating after first round offers

There is always room for negotiation, and if you don’t ask you don’t receive. You may prefer one retailers’ contract structure and anothers’ price so don’t just accept the first offer as the only offer.

Supplier loyalty 

In new markets there can be fear that entering contracts with new players are riskier to go with, but the Energy Market Authority does a thorough due diligence check for all retailer suppliers before they issue a retail license. Some of the better pricing options come from the new market players as they have experience from other, more established electricity markets around the world.

Fear of supply disruption when changing retailer

If you change retailer there are no physical changes to the way electricity is delivered to your business. The Energy Market Authority manages the physical electricity network and ensures that supply meets demand. The meter reading is managed by SP Services. Changing retailer simply means that SP send your meter data to the new retailer for billing purposes. It is up to the retailer to manage the price that they buy and sell the power at – this is all done via the financial markets and has nothing to do with the physical delivery of power to your premises. 

Not being ready to sign when the contract is ready

Delays in signing the retail contract can get very expensive. The oil price is often used as a reference point for price validity, and as we have seen recently the oil prices have been changing rapidly on a daily basis. Once the final retail offers are in and you like the contract price and the structure then you must be ready to execute the contract before the price becomes invalid.

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