Singapore/Kuala Lumpur, 18 April 2023 –
Singapore’s sole piped town gas producer and the
nation’s gas utility provider, City Energy, and clean
energy solutions provider Gentari Sdn Bhd (Gentari), a
wholly-owned subsidiary of PETRONAS, have signed two Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) to jointly conduct feasibility studies of a
hydrogen supply chain from Malaysia to Singapore, as well as to
work together to allow customers to access both parties’
electric vehicle (EV) charging network, so that EV drivers can
have a seamless cross-border charging experience across Singapore
and Malaysia.
Feasibility studies for hydrogen supply chain
Under the partnership, City Energy and Gentari will
leverage each other’s strengths, expertise and resources to
pursue opportunities in the import of hydrogen into Singapore. In
addition to supporting Singapore’s National Hydrogen
Strategy, which was announced in October 2022 as a key
decarbonisation pathway to support Singapore’s
international climate commitment to achieve net zero emissions by
2050, the agreements enable City Energy to explore alternate
sources of hydrogen to reinforce its decarbonisation efforts. Both
parties will also explore other hydrogen-related opportunities.
The
first MOU, in relation to the hydrogen feasibility studies, was
signed between Mr. Perry Ong, Chief Executive Officer of City
Energy and Michèle Azalbert, Chief Hydrogen Officer of
Gentari.
“This strategic partnership between
City Energy and Gentari is a key development for us. As City
Energy is the sole piped town gas provider for more than 880,000
homes and businesses, City Energy is well placed to establish a
hydrogen supply for the future production of our town gas. We are
excited to collaborate with Gentari to develop a hydrogen supply
chain which will contribute to our nation’s hydrogen
strategy,” said Mr. Perry Ong, Chief Executive Officer of
City Energy.
Hydrogen is the largest component in town
gas produced at City Energy’s Senoko Gasworks plant, making
City Energy one of the largest last-mile carrier of hydrogen in
Singapore. The collaboration with Gentari follows City
Energy’s ongoing feasibility studies with leading industry
partners and institutes of higher learning to explore alternative
sources of hydrogen.
“While Gentari aims to
become the go-to industry partner for clean hydrogen, we want to
be able to provide integrated clean energy solutions for customers
in Asia Pacific, among others. The collaboration with City Energy
is taking a step towards the right path in providing that
solution. We believe this partnership will be the first of many in
Singapore. We are committed to support Singapore in achieving net
zero emissions by 2050,” said Azalbert, Gentari’s
Chief Hydrogen Officer.
Gentari aims to produce up to
1.2 million tonnes per annum of clean hydrogen to address the
future increase of clean energy demand. The collaboration with
City Energy will accelerate the adoption of clean hydrogen as an
energy source and signifies commitment towards providing clean
hydrogen from Malaysia to Singapore.
Seamless EV charging across Singapore and Malaysia
The second MOU, signed between Mr. Perry Ong and Shah Yang
Razalli, Gentari’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief
Green Mobility Officer, will see Go by City Energy (Go) and
Gentari working together to deepen and expand the understanding of
the EV market and behaviour of EV users in Singapore and Malaysia,
as well as co-deploying publicly accessible EV chargers on each
other’s EV networks. The two parties will also explore and
identify best practices for mobile roaming applications in both
countries.
In April 2022, City Energy launched its EV
charging solution arm, Go, to provide EV charging solution as a
service to commercial buildings, mixed developments, and private
housing estates, to support Singapore’s set target of
reduced land transport emissions by 80% from the 2016 peak by, or
around 2050.
As the first EV charging service provider
to offer cross-border connectivity into Malaysia through a
seamless operational service across Singapore and Malaysia with
just one mobile application (app), Go now offers 118 charging
points across more than 50 locations in Malaysia through its app,
City Energy Go. This collaboration between Go and Gentari will
accelerate the pace of charger deployments by both parties through
co-deployment arrangements. Both parties will work on expanding
their EV charging networks, allowing EV drivers in both Singapore
and Malaysia connectivity and convenience.
Mr. Perry
Ong said: “Range anxiety is a real concern for electric car
drivers. For those driving between Singapore and Malaysia, a
seamless, highly accessible network of chargers will put their
mind at ease, and this is what City Energy seeks to do with our
partners across the Causeway. As we continue our expansion of our
Go by City Energy network of private and commercial developments
in Singapore, we will distinguish ourselves through added value in
the form of a robust cross-border EV network built on expanded
connectivity into Malaysia.”
Gentari is the second
Malaysian company City Energy is collaborating with for EV
charging.
The MOU between Gentari and Go will not only
support EV infrastructure development in Singapore and Malaysia
respectively, but also encourage the development of a robust
cross-border EV network, ensuring a more seamless customer
experience for EV drivers traveling between the two countries.
“At
Gentari, we are working with like-minded partners to support
network development in driving sustainable mobility. Today, we are
partnering with City Energy to ensure a seamless driving
experience for EV users between Malaysia and Singapore, and we
hope this collaboration will also become Gentari’s foray
into the Singapore market to support regional development of
charging network within Asia Pacific,” said Shah Yang
Razalli, Gentari’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer and Chief
Green Mobility Officer.