During SIEW Thinktank Roundtable hosted by the U.S. Commercial Service, U.S. Department of Commerce, subject matter experts weighed in on how U.S. and Singapore companies can showcase innovative energy solutions and technologies such as fuel cells, hydrogen, carbon capture, floating solar, offshore wind, smart grids, etc to Asian officials and organizations. Not only will these energy solutions and technologies help to reduce energy intensity, conserve energy, enhance efficiencies but also help to address climate change issues. The Forum also highlighted the U.S. Administration’s clean energy and climate priorities at the energy event that included Singaporean, Southeast Asian, and broader Indo-Pacific region stakeholders. More than 135 participants registered for the Forum.
Mr Richard Steffens, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Asia, International Trade Administration from the U.S. Department of Commerce and Mr Jonathan Goh, Director, External Relations from the Energy Market Authority made Welcoming and Opening Remarks.
Mr Steffens stated that the U.S. Administration is committed to reduce greenhouse gases and address climate change issues. To do this, the U.S. Government will work with countries in the Indo-Pacific region through various partnerships one of which is the U.S.-Singapore Partnership for Growth and Innovation. This partnership was signed by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce and the Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry in October 2021.
Mr Goh stated that Singapore is closely collaborating with the U.S. on climate action, environmental governance and low-carbon solutions as well as sharing best practices on energy technologies and innovation as part of energy transition. The Energy Market Authority of Singapore is also looking at low-carbon technologies such as hydrogen, enriched natural gas, floating solar farms and carbon capture. Singapore is also working with U.S. Departments of Energy and State on various clean energy objectives.
This was followed by subject matter experts from Bloomenergy, Electric Power Research Institute and Durapower Asia respectively. The Forum was moderated by Christian Koschil, Commercial Officer / Digital Attache from the U.S. Commercial Service at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore.
Mr Benjamin Gaszynski, Director of Business Development, South-East Asia at Bloomenergy spoke on Decarbonization Roadmap: Greening the world with solid oxide fuel cell / electrolyser technology. Mr Gaszynski indicated that Bloomenergy is a world leader in solid oxide technology which is used in the production of hydrogen and this is carbon free for their customers. Applications can be found in the financial, retail and technology sectors respectively. Bloomenergy also looks at fuel cells to enhance energy decarbonization and integration.
Mr Dan Killoren, Program Leader, Global Innovation Hub at Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) spoke on Smart Grid Interoperability Standards Adoption in Southeast Asia. Mr Killoren indicated that EPRI has been looking at standards for Grid Modernization in five Southeast Asian countries – Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. These standards are important for the energy landscape where not only decarbonization is a goal but also energy reliability and resilience. Smart grid interoperability is therefore something that regional countries should collaborate on. ISO and IEC standards are widely used according to EPRI.
Mr Douglas Duncan, Senior Manager, Strategic Development at Durapower Asia spoke on Energy Storage Systems. Mr Duncan indicated that Durapower expertise is in energy storage solutions where he highlighted their innovative work in Nickel Manganese Cobalt, Lithium Iron Phosphate and Titanium Oxide batteries to enhance safety and durability for vehicles, boats and AGVs. In addition, Durapower is also working with government agencies to develop innovative and best in class technologies for various clean energy projects such as microgrids and off-grid applications.
During the Q&A roundtable, the presenters highlighted the following:
- The impact of the footprint of your product to improve sustainability
- Resource adequacy is important for utilities especially with extreme weather
- The pandemic has caused a shift in consumption and energy demand where resilience and reliability are important
- Sustainable solutions and grid reliability are important for the future
- Events such as SIEW are necessary to share best practices and innovative technologies
SIEW 2022 will be held on 24-28 October 2022! Save the date and sign up for updates on SIEW.