SINGAPORE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Adam Moncrieff, Karthik Kumar, Lynette Lim and Kelly Choo, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
electricity interconnections. SGEI’s mandate covers the planning, construction, ownership and opera- tion of regional power links. It also collaborates with regional partners on renewable energy project devel- opment and technical cooperation. All developers proposing to export electricity to Singapore must engage SGEI to confirm that their technical designs and project specifications are compatible with Singa- pore’s landing-site and grid infrastructure. SGEI may also co-develop and invest in interconnector projects. It is supported by SP PowerInterconnect, a subsidiary of the SP Group, which provides technical expertise in transmission and distribution asset design, engineer- ing and operation. Singapore’s electricity import programme has been built incrementally. Commercial imports commenced in 2022 with a 100 MW trial from Malaysia, which allowed the government to test and refine its technical and regulatory frameworks. Separate arrangements import up to 100 MW of renewable electricity via the Lao PDR-Thailand-Malaysia-Singapore Power Inte- gration Project and another 100 MW from Indonesia. In November 2021, the EMA launched its first request for proposal (RFP) to select and appoint entities to import and sell up to 1.2 GW of low-carbon electricity in Singapore via new interconnectors for delivery by 2027. Since then, in response to industry feedback requesting more time to develop proposals, the EMA combined this first RFP process with the second RFP process (in July 2022) for up to 4 GW of imported low- carbon electricity, and continues to welcome inter- ested companies to submit proposals for such import. As at the time of writing, Singapore had issued Con- ditional Approvals to 11 projects to import approxi- mately 8.35 GW of low-carbon electricity from Aus- tralia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Sarawak (Malaysia) and Vietnam. Six of these projects from Indonesia have advanced to the Conditional Licence stage. These developments reflect Singapore’s ongoing commitment to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Power Grid vision. In September 2024, ASEAN Energy Ministers agreed to develop a regional framework for subsea power cables, with a target of realising the ASEAN Power Grid by 2045.
Interconnector infrastructure is capital-intensive and carries significant development risk – factors that make government-backed entities like SGEI essential in the de-risking and navigating the process. Biomethane as a Potential Decarbonisation Pathway In September 2025, Singapore’s Economic Develop- ment Board (EDB) issued a closed call for proposals under a “biomethane sandbox” designed to evaluate the fuel’s potential for power generation and indus- trial use. Biomethane is an attractive decarbonisation option for Singapore because it is chemically inter- changeable with natural gas, meaning it can flow through existing pipeline infrastructure and fire exist- ing Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) plants with- out modification. The sandbox has two broad objectives: first, to jump- start biomethane supply chain development by allow- ing participants to test viability in a controlled setting; and second, to match emerging supply with energy sector demand ahead of wider commercial rollout. A total of 300 MW of generation capacity has been earmarked for allocation to power companies acting as trade aggregators, with initial molecular deliveries expected by 2030 across a total quota of 18 million MMBtu (million British thermal units). Participants must demonstrate a credible supply chain and present committed offtake from end-customers. The call for proposals was initially scheduled for award by February 2026, and industry activity indicates the programme is advancing. Although participation is initially limited, the initiative signals the government’s intent to add biomethane to Singapore’s commercially available fuel mix in the near term. Industry commen- tators have noted that this is among the largest single biomethane procurement exercises seen globally to date, with interest driven largely by data centre opera- tors and industrial users seeking to decarbonise their energy consumption. Virtual Power Plants in Singapore In October 2025, the EMA launched a Virtual Power Plant (VPP) regulatory sandbox as part of its Future Grid Capabilities Roadmap, a strategic plan aimed at
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