Singapore to enact energy audits on 'energy-intensive' buildings

The energy audit will intensify the government’s greening efforts.

Senior Minister of State for National Development Tian Kiat How said that buildings in Singapore must be subjected to energy audits to improve their energy performance.

The audit is part of the Building and Construction Authority’s (BCA) new Mandatory Energy Improvement (MEI) regime, which will be introduced by the end of 2024.

Energy-intensive commercial buildings, healthcare facilities, sports and recreation centres, and institutional buildings with a Gross Floor Area of 5,000 square metres and above are included in the mandatory audit.

After the audit, properties with poor energy performance are introduced to simple and cost-effective improvements, such as replacing faulty parts and installing energy-saving lighting.

In the meantime, the BCA will provide individual energy performance data for each building in the country. They will be ranked by energy performance amongst the rest of similar topologies.

In his speech during the Committee of Supply debate last 2 March, Senior Minister Tan emphasized MEI’s need for the buildings to reduce their energy consumption. He also said that the new regime will intensify the government’s greening efforts to reach their national target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

He noted that 55% of Singapore’s buildings were “greened”, with 20% of its new buildings gaining Super Low Energy standards and its best-in-class buildings achieving over 70% improvement in energy efficiency over the 2005 level.

However, Senior Minister Tan said they should do more to “green our existing stock of older buildings.” 

“These buildings may not have been designed with sustainability in mind, or may not be operated or maintained efficiently. This can result in significant energy wastage, sometimes more than a quarter of the buildings’ overall energy use,” he said.