Study of Hydrogen Imports and Downstream Applications for Singapore

Study of Hydrogen Imports and Downstream Applications for Singapore

Possible benefits of hydrogen deployment in Singapore include enhanced air quality, lower carbon emissions, development of new industries and creation of new employment opportunities, thus helping to ensure a sustainable future for Singapore.

Singapore has long been considered a technologically advanced country with a strong research, development and demonstration (RD&D) community. Advancement of hydrogen technologies and integration into the economy would create an opportunity to further strengthen RD&D capabilities and allow Singapore to showcase and share its hydrogen competencies, whilst also continuing to draw on the experience of international partners.

Given current constraints as an alternative energydisadvantaged country, Singapore could take advantage of its existing brown hydrogen, hydrogen produced using fossil fuels, and natural gas infrastructure to pilot the use of hydrogen in suitable downstream applications, with a clear pathway towards the eventual use of lowcarbon hydrogen. As such, larger volumes could be progressively imported from international projects.

This provides Singapore with an opportunity to develop new international relationships with emerging renewable energy-rich nations and strengthen existing strategic partnerships. The technological aspects of a hydrogen economy are being developed at a rapid pace by many private and government stakeholders. Nonetheless, as several key hydrogen technologies are still nascent in comparison with fossil fuels, policy levers and funding may need to be put in place to support the competitiveness of hydrogen across suitable downstream applications and accelerate the adoption of hydrogen as a fuel in Singapore.

The green hydrogen market is a disruptive one, making future energy markets difficult to predict. Moreover, the mass adoption of hydrogen technologies could contribute to steeper reductions in green hydrogen production prices than current projections.

As one of the first countries in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region to study the potential of hydrogen deployment, Singapore can partner with regional importing nations, such as Japan and South Korea, and exporting nations such as Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia to accelerate the adoption of a regional hydrogen economy. Through the development of a domestic hydrogen economy, Singapore could play an important role as a hydrogen hub within the APAC region and export knowledge and technologies developed to neighbouring countries.