IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i5p2630-d508531.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Identification of Factors Influencing Development of Photovoltaic (PV) Implementation in Singapore

Author

Listed:
  • Siu-Kit Lau

    (Department of Architecture, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117566, Singapore)

  • Vesna Kosorić

    (Department of Architecture, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117566, Singapore
    Balkan Energy AG, 4656 Starrkirch Wil, Switzerland
    Daniel Hammer Architekt FH AG, 4600 Olten, Switzerland)

  • Monika Bieri

    (Cleantech Energy Corporation Pte Ltd., Singapore 049482, Singapore)

  • André.M. Nobre

    (Cleantech Energy Corporation Pte Ltd., Singapore 049482, Singapore)

Abstract

Despite the steady growth of grid-connected installed capacity in Singapore in the last decade and intensive government effort towards “solarization”, implementation of photovoltaics (PV) and especially building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) into the built environment has not gathered as much momentum as would have been expected given the country’s ample solar energy resource potential, strong economic fundamentals and the robust real estate sector. Based on a conducted web-survey and qualitative interviews among local professionals, this paper examines the obstacles, potentials and drivers that could facilitate and accelerate BIPV and PV façade integration, as well as needs that could encourage wider PV use. In order to define a unified strategy, aligning the stakeholders’ views, the following disputable factors are pointed out and discussed: (1) incomplete understanding of BIPV and building-applied photovoltaics (BAPV) among stakeholders, (2) costs of BIPV systems, (3) low awareness of and confidence in “integrability” of PV modules, (4) incomplete knowledge about and insufficiently investigated PV performance and (5) potential of PV façade and roof integration. Since the costs are the key identified factor for BIPV implementation, life-cycle cost (LCC) assessments of PV façade and roof integrations have been performed, which supported the search for solutions to identified problems. The performed analysis and findings present the basis for the development of a long-term holistic strategy for PV implementation in Singapore that could help the highly-urbanized, tropical resource- and land-constrained island city-state reduce the dependency on fossil fuels and achieve the climate change targets, thus promoting a more sustainable built environment.

Suggested Citation

  • Siu-Kit Lau & Vesna Kosorić & Monika Bieri & André.M. Nobre, 2021. "Identification of Factors Influencing Development of Photovoltaic (PV) Implementation in Singapore," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-30, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:5:p:2630-:d:508531
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/5/2630/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/5/2630/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gholami, Hassan & Røstvik, Harald Nils, 2020. "Economic analysis of BIPV systems as a building envelope material for building skins in Europe," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    2. Kosorić, Vesna & Lau, Siu-Kit & Tablada, Abel & Lau, Stephen Siu-Yu, 2018. "General model of Photovoltaic (PV) integration into existing public high-rise residential buildings in Singapore – Challenges and benefits," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 70-89.
    3. Bhati, Abhishek & Hansen, Michael & Chan, Ching Man, 2017. "Energy conservation through smart homes in a smart city: A lesson for Singapore households," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 230-239.
    4. Karakaya, Emrah & Sriwannawit, Pranpreya, 2015. "Barriers to the adoption of photovoltaic systems: The state of the art," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 60-66.
    5. Xu, X.Y. & Ang, B.W., 2014. "Analysing residential energy consumption using index decomposition analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 342-351.
    6. Abel Tablada & Vesna Kosorić & Huajing Huang & Ian Kevin Chaplin & Siu-Kit Lau & Chao Yuan & Stephen Siu-Yu Lau, 2018. "Design Optimization of Productive Façades: Integrating Photovoltaic and Farming Systems at the Tropical Technologies Laboratory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-24, October.
    7. Kosorić, Vesna & Huang, Huajing & Tablada, Abel & Lau, Siu-Kit & Tan, Hugh T.W., 2019. "Survey on the social acceptance of the productive façade concept integrating photovoltaic and farming systems in high-rise public housing blocks in Singapore," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 197-214.
    8. Lu, Yujie & Chang, Ruidong & Shabunko, Veronika & Lay Yee, Amy Tan, 2019. "The implementation of building-integrated photovoltaics in Singapore: drivers versus barriers," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 400-408.
    9. Azadian, Farshad & Radzi, M.A.M., 2013. "A general approach toward building integrated photovoltaic systems and its implementation barriers: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 22(C), pages 527-538.
    10. Chang, Ruidong & Cao, Yuan & Lu, Yujie & Shabunko, Veronika, 2019. "Should BIPV technologies be empowered by innovation policy mix to facilitate energy transitions? - Revealing stakeholders' different perspectives using Q methodology," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 307-318.
    11. Christophe Ballif & Laure-Emmanuelle Perret-Aebi & Sophie Lufkin & Emmanuel Rey, 2018. "Integrated thinking for photovoltaics in buildings," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 3(6), pages 438-442, June.
    12. Daniel Efurosibina Attoye & Kheira Anissa Tabet Aoul & Ahmed Hassan, 2017. "A Review on Building Integrated Photovoltaic Façade Customization Potentials," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-24, December.
    13. Agathokleous, Rafaela A. & Kalogirou, Soteris A., 2020. "Status, barriers and perspectives of building integrated photovoltaic systems," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    14. Taleb, H.M. & Pitts, A.C., 2009. "The potential to exploit use of building-integrated photovoltaics in countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 1092-1099.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Erika Marsillac, 2021. "Supporting Renewable Energy Market Growth through the Circular Integration of End-of-Use and End-of-Life Photovoltaics," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-9, September.
    2. Costa, Alberto & Ng, Tsan Sheng & Su, Bin, 2023. "Long-term solar PV planning: An economic-driven robust optimization approach," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 335(C).
    3. Mohammed Albattah & Daniel Efurosibina Attoye, 2021. "A Quantitative Investigation on Awareness of Renewable Energy Building Technology in the United Arab Emirates," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-20, June.
    4. Tianyi Chen & Yaning An & Chye Kiang Heng, 2022. "A Review of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics in Singapore: Status, Barriers, and Prospects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-25, August.
    5. Vesna Kosorić & Siu-Kit Lau & Abel Tablada & Monika Bieri & André M. Nobre, 2021. "A Holistic Strategy for Successful Photovoltaic (PV) Implementation into Singapore’s Built Environment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-35, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vesna Kosorić & Siu-Kit Lau & Abel Tablada & Monika Bieri & André M. Nobre, 2021. "A Holistic Strategy for Successful Photovoltaic (PV) Implementation into Singapore’s Built Environment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-35, June.
    2. Mohammad Khairul Basher & Mohammad Nur-E Alam & Kamal Alameh, 2021. "Design, Development, and Characterization of Low Distortion Advanced Semitransparent Photovoltaic Glass for Buildings Applications," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-11, June.
    3. Ding, Liping & Zhu, Yuxuan & Zheng, Longwei & Dai, Qiyao & Zhang, Zumeng, 2023. "What is the path of photovoltaic building (BIPV or BAPV) promotion? --The perspective of evolutionary games," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).
    4. Skandalos, Nikolaos & Karamanis, Dimitris, 2021. "An optimization approach to photovoltaic building integration towards low energy buildings in different climate zones," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 295(C).
    5. Daniel Efurosibina Attoye & Timothy O. Adekunle & Kheira Anissa Tabet Aoul & Ahmed Hassan & Samuel Osekafore Attoye, 2018. "A Conceptual Framework for a Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) Educative-Communication Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-21, October.
    6. Mohammed Albattah & Daniel Efurosibina Attoye, 2021. "A Quantitative Investigation on Awareness of Renewable Energy Building Technology in the United Arab Emirates," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-20, June.
    7. Tianyi Chen & Yaning An & Chye Kiang Heng, 2022. "A Review of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics in Singapore: Status, Barriers, and Prospects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-25, August.
    8. Mohammad Khairul Basher & Mohammad Nur-E-Alam & Md Momtazur Rahman & Steven Hinckley & Kamal Alameh, 2022. "Design, Development, and Characterization of Highly Efficient Colored Photovoltaic Module for Sustainable Buildings Applications," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-11, April.
    9. Liu, Zhengguang & Guo, Zhiling & Chen, Qi & Song, Chenchen & Shang, Wenlong & Yuan, Meng & Zhang, Haoran, 2023. "A review of data-driven smart building-integrated photovoltaic systems: Challenges and objectives," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 263(PE).
    10. Hassan Gholami & Harald Nils Røstvik & Koen Steemers, 2021. "The Contribution of Building-Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) to the Concept of Nearly Zero-Energy Cities in Europe: Potential and Challenges Ahead," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-22, September.
    11. Daniel Efurosibina Attoye & Kheira Anissa Tabet Aoul & Ahmed Hassan, 2017. "A Review on Building Integrated Photovoltaic Façade Customization Potentials," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-24, December.
    12. Weerasinghe, R.P.N.P. & Yang, R.J. & Wakefield, R. & Too, E. & Le, T. & Corkish, R. & Chen, S. & Wang, C., 2021. "Economic viability of building integrated photovoltaics: A review of forty-five (45) non-domestic buildings in twelve (12) western countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    13. Li, Peixian & Ng, Jeremy & Lu, Yujie, 2022. "Accelerating the adoption of renewable energy certificate: Insights from a survey of corporate renewable procurement in Singapore," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 1272-1282.
    14. Kosorić, Vesna & Huang, Huajing & Tablada, Abel & Lau, Siu-Kit & Tan, Hugh T.W., 2019. "Survey on the social acceptance of the productive façade concept integrating photovoltaic and farming systems in high-rise public housing blocks in Singapore," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 197-214.
    15. Hyung Jun An & Jong Ho Yoon & Young Sub An & Eunnyeong Heo, 2018. "Heating and Cooling Performance of Office Buildings with a-Si BIPV Windows Considering Operating Conditions in Temperate Climates: The Case of Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-19, December.
    16. Strazzera, Elisabetta & Statzu, Vania, 2017. "Fostering photovoltaic technologies in Mediterranean cities: Consumers’ demand and social acceptance," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 102(PB), pages 361-371.
    17. Lu, Yujie & Chang, Ruidong & Shabunko, Veronika & Lay Yee, Amy Tan, 2019. "The implementation of building-integrated photovoltaics in Singapore: drivers versus barriers," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C), pages 400-408.
    18. Nandal, Vinod & Kumar, Raj & Singh, S.K., 2019. "Barriers identification and analysis of solar power implementation in Indian thermal power plants: An Interpretative Structural Modeling approach," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-1.
    19. Sohani, Ali & Sayyaadi, Hoseyn & Miremadi, Seyed Rahman & Yang, Xiaohu & Doranehgard, Mohammad Hossein & Nizetic, Sandro, 2023. "Determination of the best air space value for installation of a PV façade technology based on 4E characteristics," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 262(PB).
    20. Abel Tablada & Vesna Kosorić & Huajing Huang & Ian Kevin Chaplin & Siu-Kit Lau & Chao Yuan & Stephen Siu-Yu Lau, 2018. "Design Optimization of Productive Façades: Integrating Photovoltaic and Farming Systems at the Tropical Technologies Laboratory," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-24, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:5:p:2630-:d:508531. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.