{
  "id": 8979780,
  "title": "Singapore saves S$123.8M in fossil fuel import costs as solar power investments cushions global energy crisis",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/21/singapore-saves-s-123-8m-in-fossil-fuel-import-costs-as-solar-power",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-21T12:04:43.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Independent Singapore",
    "slug": "the-independent-singapore",
    "url": "https://theindependent.sg/singapore-saves-s-123-8m-in-fossil-fuel-import-costs-as-solar-power-investments-cushions-global-energy-crisis"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Singapore has managed to save an estimated S$123.8 million (US$97 million) in fossil fuel import costs over the past five months, according to a report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). Most of the savings were attributed to avoided gas imports, a direct result of the city-state's investments in solar energy. The savings were recorded after energy prices surged following a global energy crisis sparked by the conflict in the Strait of Hormuz.\n\nA CREA analyst pointed out that the savings demonstrated the benefits of Singapore's solar expansion programme. According to the report, solar firms in the city-state started seeing increased demand for solar panels in April, coinciding with the US-Iran war, which led to a rise in electricity costs. Prior to this, Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), had predicted that countries would increasingly turn to renewable energy sources like solar and wind amid the global energy crisis.\n\nDespite the savings, Singapore's reliance on imported fossil fuels still resulted in additional costs of US$8.1 billion in the six months following the start of the US-Iran war, placing the city-state at 13th among 171 territories for extra fossil fuel import costs during this period. China, India, and the US were found to have incurred the highest costs.\n\nWhile netizens welcomed the gains from Singapore's solar investments, some pointed out that energy storage remains a bottleneck in the transition away from fossil fuels. One commenter suggested that research and development, as well as subsidies, should be focused on battery technology to fully replace fossil fuels. Another noted that while the savings may seem significant in today's economy, solar energy only accounts for about 2% of electricity usage in Singapore. The commenter emphasized that the financial gain should not be the primary driver for transitioning to greener energy sources.",
  "summary": "Most of the savings came from avoided gas imports, the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) report said.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}