INGENIEUR
Environmental cost
This custom built sustainable and energy-efficient
office building is the Unilever Headquarters for
Thailand.
There is also potential for green bonds as a
means of finance. City Developments Limited
(CDL), a Singapore based property developer
issued the island republic’s first ever green bond
– a two-year secured bond worth USD74 million
at a 1.98% coupon due in 2019 for the retrofit
of an office building. The retrofitting included an
upgraded chiller plant, energy efficient lights and
motion sensors to reduce energy waste.
Given Southeast Asia’s rapid pace of
infrastructure development, energy efficiency is
undoubtedly an important aspect to consider when
constructing buildings. Ultimately, it boils down to
ensuring environment-friendly development which,
at the same time, doesn’t disrupt our comfort.
The Cost of Cooling Down (Source: ASEAN
POST, September 23, 2018)
Southeast Asia’s electricity consumption has been
rising at an annual rate of 7.5% from 155.3TWh
in 1990 to 821.1TWh in 2013, according to a
white paper by the ASEAN Centre for Energy in the
Spring 2016 issue of Cornerstone Journal.
About 60% of electricity usage in Southeast
Asian cities is attributable to the use of air-
conditioning alone. The study was commenting
on the correlation between higher GDP per
capita and higher electricity use in six Southeast
Asian countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
At this rate, it is projected that air-conditioning
could account for up to 40% of Southeast Asia’s
electricity consumption by 2040.
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Findings from the white paper also reveal that
80% of ASEAN’s electricity is generated from fossil
fuels, with Vietnam and Indonesia operating the
highest number of coal plants in the region. Higher
electricity usage contributes to higher greenhouse
gas emissions, which results in global warming.
“Gas molecules that absorb thermal infrared
radiation, and are in significant enough quantity,
can force the climate system. These types
of molecules are called greenhouse gases,”
explained Michael Daley, an Environmental
Science professor at Lasell College in the United
States (US). Climate forcing refers to any variations
of the climate which arise from outside the climate
system itself.
Greenhouse gases can consist of carbon
dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and fluorinated
gases – of these, methane is released during the
production and transport of coal, whereas carbon
dioxide is released when coal, natural gas and oil
(fossil fuels) are burnt.
Meanwhile, fluorinated gases include
hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are synthetic
greenhouse gases with 1,000-3,000 times more
global warming potential than carbon dioxide.
These gases currently make up about 1% of total
global greenhouse emissions, but this figure is
likely to increase as air-conditioning use rises
around the world.
Efficient air-conditioning units
In December 2017, Eco - Busine s s, an
environmental media agency stated that demand
for air-conditioning in ASEAN countries is projected
to rise from 6.5 million units in 2013 to 1.6 billion
in 2018.
With demand on an upward scale, increased
efficiency of air-conditioning units would be key
for Southeast Asian economies to control the
negative impact on the environment. However,
public awareness of the impact of air-conditioning
on the environment remains low.
Government policy and regulation could also
help increase understanding and awareness
of the negative impact of air-conditioning on
the environment. An example of Government
regulation is the introduction of a higher Energy