Saturday, June 1, 2013

Cheaper Solar Panels Opportunity for Singapore, World Bank Says

Falling prices for solar panels present an opportunity for Singapore to invest more in renewable energy, according to a World Bank official.


The city-state may focus more on solar spending given the drop in panel costs, Dejan R. Ostojic, the energy sector leader for East Asia and Pacific Region, said in an interview in the city-state today.

“Prices for solar panels have declined significantly in the past year or two,” said Ostojic. “Investors would probably like to take advantage of the favorable pricing.”

Electricity generation systems of all types will expand as energy demand increases amid economic growth in Singapore, he said. “Renewables will certainly play a role,” he added.

Solar panel prices have declined 15 percent this year, falling to 83.87 cents a watt, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance data.

Ostojic is also optimistic about China’s expansion into wind power generation.

China, the world’s largest wind-power market, aims to increase its installed capacity from the source to 100 gigawatts by 2015, the State Council said in July.

“China has done remarkably well in increasing wind capacity,” he said. “It has its own target and there is no reason to doubt it.”

The country faces challenges in adding to its wind-power capacity because the expansion of the transmission grid has not kept pace with the additional generation, he said.

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