Microsoft and EDP Collaborate on Singapore’s Largest Solar Project

Global tech giant Microsoft on Tuesday said that it will purchase 100% of the solar energy exported to the Singapore grid from EDP Renewables’ (EDPR) SolarNova 8 project.

The project consists of installing up to 200 megawatt-peak (MWp) of solar capacity via panels atop 1,075 public housing buildings and 101 government-owned buildings in the city-state of Singapore.

The Madrid-based EDPR was awarded Phase 8 of the SolarNova programme in February this year and the project is both the largest solar project in Singapore and the largest initiative under the government’s SolarNova programme.

EDPR and Microsoft have signed a 20-year offtake agreement, which is the second signed between both companies in Singapore; Microsoft announced in 2018 an agreement to purchase 100% of a similar 60MWp project by Sunseap Group (now EDP Renewables APAC), which marked Microsoft’s first clean energy deal in Asia.

EDPR APAC was formerly known as Sunseap before it was acquired by the Spanish renewable energy firm in 2022.

Launched in 2014, the SolarNova Programme is led by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and Housing Development Board (HDB) to accelerate the deployment of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in Singapore.

Under the SolarNova programme, HDB aggregates public sector demand for the installation of solar panels across HDB blocks and government sites.

Having surpassed its earlier solar target of 220MWp by 2020, HDB announced in 2019 a new solar target of 540MWp by 2030. The new target could potentially generate 648 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of clean energy annually, contributing towards the national solar targets of 1.5 gigawatt-peak (GWp) by 2025, and 2GWp by 2030, as set out under the Singapore Green Plan.

Achieving Sustainable Goals

EDP Renewables CEO Miguel Stilwell D’Andrade said that they were strengthening EDP’s global collaboration with Microsoft through this project and together were taking a step towards achieving Singapore’s sustainability goals of at least 2GWp of solar energy by 2030. Contracting with Microsoft is a catalyst for accelerating the energy transition and to continue investing in the region, he said.

Adrian Anderson, general manager, renewables, carbon free energy at Microsoft, said that Microsoft appreciates the global relationship that it has built with EDPR, enabling their companies to drive grid decarbonisation efforts in Singapore, the US and Europe.

Building renewable energy portfolio with EDPR ensures that Microsoft can continue to secure renewable energy supply to meet its ambitious renewable energy and decarbonisation goals, he said.

According to a Bloomberg report, Microsoft has faced setbacks in meeting its ambitious green goals of becoming carbon-negative by the end of the decade, reporting a 30% rise in emissions last year from 2020 levels in one of the first concrete examples of how rising investment in artificial intelligence can hinder efforts to cut pollution. The company has since ramped up efforts to reach its climate goals.