In addition, the Expo’s trade fair and conference, held 2-4 November at the Suntec International Convention & Exhibition Centre in Singapore, featured more than 170 international exhibitors and over 115 speakers representing the leading players in the technology, services, finance and government sectors.
The annual event, which highlights Asian trends in renewable energy and energy efficiency, also served as the anchor for Singapore International Energy Week.
According to a report by The World Bank, energy consumption in East Asia alone has trebled over the past 30 years due to growing cities and rapid industrialization, and demand is expected to double again in the next 20 years.
To support this, the current share of low carbon technologies in power generation needs to increase three-fold from today’s 70 percent and this would have to primarily come from wind, hydropower, geothermal and biomass energy sources from various countries in Asia.
Paving the Way for Energy Security
As evidenced by the intensive high level discussions and networking it fostered, Clean Energy Expo Asia plays an important role in supporting these sectors' continued growth.
“As seen in this year’s trade fair and Conference, new emerging concepts and systems demonstrate the importance of renewable energy as the new source of power for the future,” said Michael Dreyer, vice president for Asia Pacific for Koelnmesse, one of the world’s leading organizers of industry trade shows.
“With traditional barriers such as technology and costs falling, the world will soon go the way of renewable energy and Asia will be at the forefront,” Dreyer continued. “By providing a key platform for industry players to share knowledge and interact with industry leaders from across the value chain, Clean Energy Expo Asia acts as a catalyst for growth and development of renewables in the region.”
Among the most talked about sessions at the conference was “Energy Security and Clean Energy Policies”, which saw presentations from the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) highlighting the importance and role of clean energy policies and its link to investment, economic growth and human development in Asia.
ADB estimates that energy demand in the region will grow by about 2.6 percent annually, challenging the energy security of the region.
“Most governments in Asia Pacific have taken the first step by adopting ambitious targets to increase access to energy for their populations,” said Samuel Tumiwa, Principal Planning and Coordination Specialist, Regional & Sustainable Development Department, Asian Development Bank.
“However, there is a long way to go. The government cannot work alone and more partnerships with the private sector are crucial to drive development in the renewable energy industry and secure a sustainable energy future,” he said.
Showcasing the latest in clean energy technology
This year’s trade fair saw a number of interesting exhibitors showcasing innovative Asian solutions in sustainable mobility, wind turbine technology as well as various energy-efficient technologies for homes, office buildings and public property.
One such company was Singapore-based Sing Yue Technologies, which unveiled its latest innovation, the CherWind™ Compressed Wind Turbine. The first of its kind in Asia, this new wind turbine provides an alternative renewable energy source to urbanized areas and cities with high population densities.
Leveraging high rise buildings, instead of offshore or suburban areas where wind turbines are usually located, this small wind turbine design is ideal for metropolitan Asian cities, the company said.
Exhibitor SwissINSO also launched two unique turnkey solar-powered solutions at the trade fair – the Krystall Solar Water Purification system and the Klymaa Solar Thermal Control system.
The Krystall Solar Water Purification system combines exclusive membrane technology with state-of-the-art photovoltaic panels into a cost-effective, solar-powered transportable water purification/desalination unit.
Each unit is capable of converting brackish, sea or spoiled surface water into 100,000 litres/day of high quality drinking water.
The Klymaa Solar Thermal Control system is an environmentally friendly air cooling/heating solution that uses revolutionary coloured opaque solar thermal panels that can be mounted on the façade of a building to capture the sun’s energy in an aesthetic manner to supply the necessary energy to run the entire cooling system for the building.
Electric vehicles also took the spotlight at this year’s Clean Energy Expo Asia.
From a three-wheeled electronic Bike Board, a single-seat small electric vehicle that uses plant-based bio plastics for some of its body parts, to full-fledged high-performance electric-powered sports cars, the Sustainable Mobility Pavilion at this year’s trade fair showed participants a full range of electric vehicles.
Exhibitors Audi and EV World were also panellists in the Sustainable Mobility Roundtable that brought together both industry practitioners and policy makers in a robust discussion to help pave the way for the mass adoption of electric vehicles.
A holistic platform for knowledge sharing and networking
With four times the exhibition space as last year, Clean Energy Expo Asia also offered extensive business and networking opportunities.
For instance, the Japan Pavilion provided companies such as SANYO Asia Pte, Tokyo Electron Ltd and Furukawa Electric Singapore Pte Ltd, with an excellent opportunity to connect Japanese businesses to the growing markets in Southeast Asia.
“The Japanese Government is putting a lot of emphasis on clean energy industry development,” said Shigeki Maeda, Managing Director, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Singapore Representative Office.
“With some of the most advanced clean energy technologies in the market, Japanese companies are keen to showcase their expertise to the ASEAN region. The exhibiting companies at the Japan Pavilion have expressed their satisfaction with the opportunities presented at this event,” Maeda said.
So impressed by this year’s event were representatives of swissnex Singapore, the information, coordination and networking platform of the Embassy of Switzerland, that they are already talking about expanding their participation next year.
Also well pleased were representatives of Toyota Tsusho, whose COMS Electric Vehicle, a super compact four-wheeled single-seat car, drew strong international interest.
According to Jimmy Tan, business manager for the Global Sales & Marketing Group, IT & Electronics Department, Toyota Tsusho (Singapore) Pte Ltd, the company received many enquiries on the vehicle’s design and the novel technology over the Expo’s three days.
Many participants said a key to the Expo’s success was its ability to leverage Singapore’s excellent infrastructure and global connectivity.
“By hosting the annual Clean Energy Expo Asia trade fair and conference, Singapore is providing the region with a unique platform for knowledge sharing, technology innovation and project development for renewable energy projects from across Asia,” said Edwin Khew, president of the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore.
Next year’s Clean Energy Expo Asia will be held from 1 - 3 November 2011, at the Suntec International Convention and Exhibition Centre, Singapore.
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