Written Answer by Ministry of National Development on progress of the installation of solar panels in HDB blocks

Jan 4, 2021

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: To ask the Minister for National Development (a) what is the progress on HDB’s plans to install 5,500 solar panels in HDB blocks by end-2020; and (b) what is the Ministry’s target for HDB solar panel installation for 2021 and beyond.

Answer:

To date, we have called or awarded tenders for a total solar capacity of about 280 Megawatt-peak (MWp), covering over 5,700 HDB blocks by 2020. This surpasses our previous solar target of 220 MWp for 5,500 blocks by 2020. About half of these solar panels have been installed, with the rest to be progressively installed in batches over the next two to three years. The solar energy generated by the 280 MWp solar panels is equivalent to powering 70,300 4-room flats, and potentially reduce carbon emissions by 168,000 tonnes per year, which in turn, helps to mitigate the effects of climate change.

In addition, last year we had announced a new solar target of 540 MWp on HDB blocks by 2030, more than double the previous target. The 540 MWp target could potentially generate 648 GWh of clean energy annually. This will contribute towards the national solar target of at least 2 GWp by 2030. 

We will continue to call more tenders for the installation of solar panels on HDB rooftops in the coming years, as well as employ higher efficiency panels to optimise the use of HDB rooftop space, in order to achieve the higher target.