4 minute read
Commercial development to pursue sustainable iniƟ aƟ ves to reduce carbon emissions It will use renewable energy to power all its operaƟ ons
INITIATIVES TO REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT TO PURSUE SUSTAINABLE
Keppel Bay Tower will become the fi rst commercial development in Singapore to uƟ lise renewable energy to power all its operaƟ ons, including the funcƟ oning of tenants’ offi ces in the building.
Keppel Bay Tower is a Green Mark PlaƟ num building cerƟfi ed by the Building and ConstrucƟ on Authority (BCA).
Keppel Land, the owner and operator of Keppel Bay Tower, will be installing an assembly of PV panels, spanning about 400 m 2 , on the roof of the 18-storey building, as well as on its six-storey podium block. In addiƟ on, Keppel Land, through its electricity retailer, Keppel Electric, will be purchasing Renewable Energy CerƟfi cates (RECs), for the energy generated from photovoltaic (PV) panels installed in Keppel Off shore & Marine’s yards in Singapore.
When completed in 1Q 2020, Keppel Bay Tower’s PV system is expected to generate an energy yield of about 100,000 kWh per annum. Keppel’s latest iniƟ aƟ ve to install PV panels at Keppel Bay Tower reduces the building’s reliance on grid power. Together with the purchase of RECs, it will result in a reducƟ on of over 2,400 tonnes of carbon emissions per annum. Mr Tan Swee Yiow, CEO, Keppel Land, said, “Keppel is commiƩ ed to sustainability, both as a provider of soluƟ ons for sustainable urbanisaƟ on and as a responsible corporate ciƟ zen. We will conƟ nue to take proacƟ ve steps to enhance the environmental performance of our developments to build a more sustainable future for all our stakeholders”. These iniƟ aƟ ves are part of Keppel’s conƟ nued eff orts to transform Keppel Bay Tower into Singapore’s fi rst Super Low-Energy High-Rise ExisƟ ng Commercial Building. In 2018, Keppel Land was awarded a grant of about SGD 1.28 million by the Building and ConstrucƟ on Authority (BCA) to testbed new and emerging technologies which would reduce the building’s energy consumpƟ on signifi - cantly and improve its energy effi ciency by 20%, compared to other Green Mark PlaƟ num buildings, by June 2020. Mr Hugh Lim, CEO, Building and ConstrucƟ on Authority, said, “We commend Keppel Land for its eff orts in playing a part to push the boundaries for environmental sustainability in the Built Environment. The eff orts for Keppel Bay Tower demonstrate a good example of how even exisƟ ng large commercial buildings can tap on innovaƟ on to achieve Super Low Energy (SLE) status, by combining smart air-condiƟ oning and lighƟ ng with integrated controls. The reduced energy demand can be met by renewables harnessed onsite and off site through Keppel Land’s holisƟ c approach”. “We hope more building owners and industry players will be inspired to set new benchmarks for how we build and operate buildings - new and exisƟ ng - contribuƟ ng to the urgent task of miƟ gaƟ ng climate change through Super Low Energy Buildings”, he added.
Keppel is currently on track to meet its goal of reducing the annual energy consumpƟ on of Keppel Bay Tower to 115 kWh/m 2 per annum from its iniƟ al consumpƟ on of about 145 kWh/m 2 per annum, by June 2020. Keppel Bay Tower is also working with tenants to adopt green leases and install energy-effi cient LED lamps in their offi ces at no addiƟ onal capital investments to the tenants, as well as helping them aƩ ain Green Mark cerƟfi caƟ on.
Moving ahead, Keppel Land is also acƟ vely seeking new soluƟ ons to further reduce the building’s energy consumpƟ on to below 100 kWh/m 2 per annum, which would result in Keppel Bay Tower being 50% more energy-effi cient compared to typical offi ce buildings in Singapore.
A leading green developer, Keppel Land has garnered a total of 83 BCA Green Mark Awards, of which 16 are PlaƟ num. The total esƟ mated reducƟ on in energy consumpƟ on from all of Keppel Land’s Green Mark-awarded projects when they are fully completed will be over 200 million kWh per annum. This is in addiƟ on to total annual water savings of about 2 million m 3 and annual carbon emission reducƟ on of almost 90,000 t.
Keppel Land is the property arm of Keppel CorporaƟ on, a mulƟ -business company providing soluƟ ons for sustainable urbanisaƟ on.
Sustainability-focused funding Keppel REIT Management Limited (Keppel REIT Management), as Manager of Keppel REIT, has announced that Keppel REIT1 has obtained an unsecured SGD 150 million green loan facility from OCBC Bank. This is Keppel REIT’s second green loan facility, following a SGD 505 million green loan facility obtained in June 2019. This latest green loan facility can be used to fi nance or re-fi nance eligible green projects as well as fund the further growth of Keppel REIT’s green building porƞ olio. At the same Ɵ me, the Manager has also established the Keppel REIT Green Loan Framework, which is in line with the Green Loan Principles (2018) administered by the Loan Market AssociaƟ on and the Asia Pacifi c Loan Market AssociaƟ on.
