Singapore’s Sembcorp Industries has taken a key step in maximizing land efficiency for clean energy deployment by piloting a battery stacking solution at its existing Jurong Island energy storage system (ESS).
The approach—marking the first vertical expansion of an operational ESS on the same footprint—has increased total storage capacity from 285 megawatt-hours (MWh) to 326MWh, reflecting Singapore’s continued push to enhance grid flexibility without expanding its limited land base.
The pilot introduces a new layer of operational and technical complexity to the city-state’s evolving energy storage ecosystem. By building vertically rather than horizontally, Sembcorp is exploring how space-constrained markets can still scale storage capacity to support intermittent renewable generation. The initiative aligns with Singapore’s broader objective to strengthen system reliability as the grid absorbs higher shares of solar and distributed energy resources.
Sembcorp’s next phase involves extending the battery stacking model to other sections of the Jurong Island ESS and testing its contribution to grid stability. In partnership with the Energy Market Authority (EMA), the company will evaluate the system’s potential to provide synthetic inertia—a critical function traditionally supplied by rotating thermal generators. This capability allows batteries to counteract frequency deviations in milliseconds, maintaining power quality and preventing cascading outages.
According to Puah Kok Keong, Chief Executive of EMA, the collaboration will help Singapore’s grid transition from traditional inertia sources toward digital and distributed stability tools.
Complementing the storage expansion, Sembcorp also announced the 118 megawatt-peak (MWp) Jurong Island Solar Farm, the largest ground-mounted solar project in Singapore. The facility, spanning six interim vacant land parcels within the industrial zone, will generate enough electricity to power approximately 33,200 four-room HDB flats annually. While modest by global standards, this scale represents a significant addition in a densely built environment where solar deployment faces acute spatial constraints.
For Koh Chiap Khiong, Sembcorp’s President and CEO of Gas and Related Services and CEO, Singapore, the combined initiatives demonstrate the company’s capacity to integrate generation and storage technologies at scale. This dual approach—coupling expanded ESS capability with utility-scale solar—illustrates a hybrid model for energy resilience increasingly relevant across industrial energy hubs.
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