The Singapore Government has announced that the Energy Efficiency Grant (EEG) will be available for applications at the end of 2024. This initiative aims to support construction firms in their sustainability journey by co-funding investments in energy-efficient equipment, such as electric and other energy-efficient machinery.

“The grant will provide up to 70% co-funding support to construction firms for energy-efficient construction equipment,” said Indranee Rajah, Singapore’s Second Minister for Finance and Second Minister for National Development, speaking at the BCA Awards Ceremony 2024 that took place during the International Built Environment Week (IBEW) on 4-6 September 2024.

“Our agencies have been consulting industry stakeholders and experts to identify key construction equipment that would be most impactful to greening the construction process,” she added. “Some examples include eligible battery energy storage systems (BESS), electric excavators, wheel loaders and crawler cranes that are more energy-efficient than their diesel equivalents.”

Funding support

According to the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), the EEG will provide two tiers of support: (i) a Base Tier where eligible local construction firms will be able to receive up to 70% of funding support for pre-approved energy-efficient (EE) construction equipment, up to S$30,000; and (ii) an Advanced Tier to support firms that wish to make larger investments to drive greater energy efficiency, up to S$350,000.

If a firm applies for both the Base and Advanced Tier, the combined grant cap across both tiers is S$350,000, said BCA. For instance, if a firm has already utilised S$30,000 under the Base Tier, the grant cap for its subsequent Advanced Tier applications will be S$320,000. More details can be found below:

A). Tier: Base Tier
Support cap per company: Up to S$30,000
Qualifying equipment: Pre-approved EE equipment
Government support rate (until 31 Mar 2026): Up to 70% for SMEs and up to 30% for non-SMEs respectively

B). Tier: Advanced Tier
Support cap per company: Up to S$350,000 across Base and Advanced Tiers
Qualifying equipment: EE equipment need not be pre-approved, but must demonstrate energy savings above 350 t lifetime carbon abatement (tCO2e)
Government support rate (until 31 Mar 2026): Lower of: (i) support levels under the Base Tier; or (ii) grant quantum computed based on EE equipment’s expected lifetime energy savings

Who can apply?

Only construction firms registered and operating in Singapore under SSIC 41-43 and are using energy-efficient construction equipment for their site works may apply for the EEG for the construction industry. Applicants must also meet all the following eligibility criteria at the point of application for the respective tiers of support:

• Has a minimum of 30% local shareholding, with at least one local employee at the firm-level

• Has a group annual sales turnover of no more than S$500 million

• The equipment purchased must be used in Singapore

Note: More information on the qualifying criteria, the pre-approved list of supportable equipment, along with the detailed application guidelines and other FAQs can be found on Business Grants Portal and BCA’s website when EEG is open for applications at the end of this year. Any updates will be provided in due course when they are available.

Image: EJ Yao/Unsplash