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| Fig. 1: Map of Singapore. (Source: Wikimedia Commons) |
Nuclear is a key energy resource being considered by many countries in the move towards renewable energy sources. Singapore is no exception with over 95% of its energy being generated from natural gas - much of that being imported from other countries. [1] The transition to renewable energy has been particularly tricky for Singapore given geographical constraints - lack of strong winds, strong waves, land constraints, etc. We see these factors play out in the debate/discussion of nuclear energy - which often has not led to much tangible progress in the area.
There currently has been very little progress made on building Nuclear plants in Singapore. The reasons behind it are simple: Singapore is a country that's smaller in land area than New York City. (See Fig. 1) That makes it hard to both build a nuclear plant and also guarantee safety in the case of a reactor failure, etc, on the mainland of Singapore which is densely populated. This issue has been brought up multiple times in Parliament and in the press by cabinet ministers. Similar concerns have been echoed by experts in Singapore as well as the general population. [2]
However, Singapore hasn't entirely given up on nuclear energy. There some, albeit limited, optimism around technological progress in this area long-term - which has resulted in a wait-and-see approach. [3] In 2012, a Singaporean government conducted study concluded that the nuclear energy was not suitable for Singapore yet (for the above-mentioned reasons) but emphasized the need for Singapore to remain in the conversation to learn from other countries in the region who are currently more suited for the technology (factors such safety, economics, etc.) We see some of this in the formation of the Nuclear Safety Research and Education Programme with the initial budget of $63M which was then topped up with another $30M in 2017. [4]
That said, there are some ideas thrown around that make nuclear power more viable in the face of Singapore's geographical constraints. These include the following:
Given Singapore's relatively small land area, Small Modular Reactors could be an option given their smaller space needs and tend to be safer since they primarily rely on passive power systems. [5]
Over 20% of Singapore's mainland was built on reclaimed land. [6] A similar approach could be used in some of Singapores overseas territories (Pedra Branca, etc) to build nuclear facilities. Challenges here include territorial disputes with other Southeast Asian countries. [7]
While Singapore doesnt have much land, it does have access to a good amount of maritime territory. Floating nuclear power plants similar to the ones piloted by Russia. [8] They are self-contained and have been deployed with some success in the Russian arctic. That said, these reactors need to be brought back to a port to dispose of nuclear waste which still remains a challenge given Singapore's geographic constraints. A workaround could be to ship waste out to other countries though that would likely be politically unpopular.
Singapore can also take a more passive role in nuclear energy. Other more land-endowed countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia are looking to build nuclear power plants. Singapore could use both its deep financial resources and technical talent to help speed up work there.
Given the above options, there can be some optimism around nuclear's prospects in Singapore in the long term. That said, there are concerns that go beyond just technological and feasibility matters. The ROI and political implications of such a decision need to be considered. Making a transition from natural gas would go beyond the first order financial costs. Singapore is positioning itself as a regional natural gas trading hub which would naturally add great value to the economy in terms of both government revenues and jobs. [9]
Hydrocarbons and their related industries also make a large part of Singapore's economy. In 2007, Singapore's oil industry accounted for ~6% of its GDP. Over $500B of oil trade is channelled through Singapore each year. Oil refining is also a big industry in Singapore. Singapore has a refining capacity of 1.3M barrels a day, with over 60% of it coming from the Middle East. [10] Given the large role hydrocarbons and their trade play in Singapore's economy, a transition to nuclear can encounter lots of friction. You'd have to forego both of the above mentioned revenue-generating economic activity whilst also spending the capex needed to build new nuclear plants. For instance, a nuclear plant being built in Georgia is expected to cost US$ 27B. [11] The tradeoffs do not make much economic sense in this case.
Given this, there would generally be some reluctance/hesitation to move towards nuclear, which could possibly explain the wait-and-see approach mentioned earlier.
© Girish Kumar. The author warrants that the work is the author's own and that Stanford University provided no input other than typesetting and referencing guidelines. The author grants permission to copy, distribute and display this work in unaltered form, with attribution to the author, for noncommercial purposes only. All other rights, including commercial rights, are reserved to the author.
[1] A. Tan, "Singapore Plans to Import 30% of Energy From Low-Carbon Sources by 2035," The Straits Times, 25 Oct 21.
[2] Lim Soon Heng, "A Floating Nuclear Power Plant - Off Singapore?" The Straits Times, 4 Oct 16.
[3] S.-A. Tan, "Commentary on Nuclear Energy Sparks Debate Over Risks, Safety ," The Straits Times, 5 Nov 17.
[4] G. Chua, "Singapore Starts Nuclear Safety and Science Research Programme," The Straits Times, 23 Apr 14.
[5] E. M. A. Hussein, "Emerging Small Modular Nuclear Power Reactors: A Critical Review," Phys. Open 5, 100038 (2020).
[6] "Such Quantities of Sand," The Economist, 26 Feb 15.
[7] S. Teoh, "Malaysia to Study Options on Pedra Branca, 13 Years After ICJ Decision to Award it S'pore," The StraitsTimes, 9 Oct 21.
[8] "Russia's First Sea-Borne Nuclear Power Plant Arrives to Its Base," Reuters, 14 Sep 19.
[9] A. Dodge, "The Singaporean Natural Gas Hub: Reassembling Global Production Networks and Markets in Asia," J. Econ. Geogr. 20, 1241 (2020).
[10] "Singapore's Oil Industry," Reuters, 12 Jun 07.
[11] J. Amy, "Georgia Nuclear Plant Cost Tops $27B as More Delays Unveiled," Associated Press, 29 Jul 21.