Keppel Bay Tower, Singapore’s First Commercial Property To Obtain Green Mark Platinum Certification
SINGAPORE – The 18-storey Keppel Bay Tower in Harbourfront Avenue has been certified as a Green Mark Platinum (Zero Energy) building, announced the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) on Wednesday morning (9 December).
It is the first commercial building in Singapore to obtain this prestigious certification, stated the government agency.
To qualify for the accolade, BCA explained that the recipient must achieve a low energy use index (EUI) of under 115 kilowatt hrs per sq m per annum. Moreover, all of the building’s power supply, including plug load, must come from renewable sources, both off-site & on-site.
The commercial property is owned and managed by Keppel Corporation’s property division, Keppel Land.
“We are committed to doing our part in greening the built environment and are delighted by BCA’s recognition of Keppel Bay Tower as the first Green Mark Platinum (Zero Energy) commercial building in Singapore, which is an important affirmation of our efforts to leverage technological innovations to enhance the environmental performance of our buildings,” commented Keppel Land’s Chief Executive Tan Swee Yiow.
Under the Green Buildings Innovation Cluster (GBIC) programme, BCA awarded Keppel Land with a grant of up to S$1.28 million in 2018 to test new and emerging energy-efficient technologies at Keppel Bay Tower.
The piloted technologies include smart LED lighting solutions, an intelligent building control system, a high-efficiency air distribution system, an integrated sensor technology to improve fresh air intake, and an innovative cooling tower water management system.
By February 2020, Keppel Bay Tower managed to slash its annualised energy consumption by 22.3 percent, surpassing its initial target of 20 percent. Due to the successful pilot, some of the technologies like the high-efficiency air distribution system are presently being duplicated to the rest of the building.
Additionally, photovoltaic (PV) panels measuring over 400 sq m will be installed on the roof of Keppel Bay Tower and its 6-storey podium block. And this will generate around 100,000 kilowatt hrs per annum.
Once these initiatives are completed, Keppel Bay Tower’s annualised EUI is expected to be less than 115 kilowatt hrs per sq m per annum. This equates to a decrease of more than 30 percent from its 2017 Green Mark Platinum level and nearly 50 percent less versus usual office buildings in Singapore.
In particular, the commercial project is expected to save more than 2.2 million kilowatt hrs per year, or S$400,000 in monetary terms.
“This is a significant milestone in our green building journey. It also demonstrates how research and innovation can make zero energy, high rise commercial buildings a reality,” commented BCA’s Chief Executive Kelvin Wong.
“I believe this is just the first of many more to come and I look forward to upcoming contributions from across the Built Environment value chain to realise our collective goal of a greener and more sustainable Singapore,” he added.
