Singapore plans floating power stations
By GovInsider
Others in the region are looking at floating nuclear plants.
Singapore plans to launch at least two floating power units in coming years, it was revealed this week.
The Energy Market Authority has chosen two sites where liquefied natural gas (LNG) will be stored and converted into gas before being transferred onshore.
Such floating stations could be cheaper and quicker to build than land-based stations. They could be deployed on short notice to increase storage capacity when there is a rise in demand, according to tender documents published this month.
Alternatively, they will be permanent structures as part of usual operations. Singapore is conducting feasibility studies at the two undisclosed sites.
These are likely to be in Changi or Jurong Island which have heavily populated industrial estates, The Straits Times reports. The island country could be considering more such floating power stations.
EMA has asked for criteria on how other sites can be assessed for use in similar purposes, according to the tender document.
“As part of our infrastructure planning, EMA is studying various options to meet our long-term gas demand and to enhance energy security,” an EMA spokesperson told The Straits Times.
Others in the region have plans for floating power plants to bring electricity to far-flung islands.
China has just announced a massive fleet of 20 floating nuclear plants. These will power islands in the South China Sea, it plans, and the first will be ready by 2020. Indonesia will launch five floating power stations to serve the eastern islands of the archipelago.
These will be natural gas-powered, but it is also looking at floating nuclear power plants.