Biofuels are considered carbon neutral as they are derived from organic material (or biomass) and absorbs roughly the same amount of carbon dioxide during growth, as when burnt.

Singapore has a solid foundation in the petrochemical industry, and our strong R&D base will facilitate the development of next generation biofuels. However, we face constraints in terms of feedstock for biofuels. Furthermore, biofuels are generally more expensive than their fossil fuels equivalents.

Over the past few years, the focus in Singapore has been to kick-start biodiesel production. By producing export-oriented output volumes, Singapore can play a catalytic role in the global trade of biofuels.

Looking ahead to next-generation biofuels

Moving forward, Singapore looks to harness biofuel technology that is more advanced than the first generation (e.g. biodiesel derived from food crops such as corn, sugar cane and palm oil, which drives up the price of food products). The country aims to produce higher quality biofuels and use alternative non-food feedstock that is environment-friendly and sustainable such as jatropha oil. For example, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (TLL) has conducted research on Jatropha and spun off JOil (S) Pte. Ltd. together with some commercial partners to develop elite jatropha hybrids for commercial jatropha plantations.

Singapore is attracting new players from the US, Europe and Japan to conduct R&D on biofuels and set up biofuel pilot plants. We are also advancing our own know-how and technologies through various research organizations such as TLL, the Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences (ICES) and the Institute of Environmental Science & Engineering (IESE).