The days of buying eco-friendly electricity such as solar power are inching closer to home.

Alternative energy suppliers could soon find it more attractive to sell to the masses, as the wholesale market operator — Energy Market Company (EMC) — plans to scrap an upfront joining fee of $5,000.

Revealing this yesterday, EMC chief executive Dave Carlson said: "Smaller generators do say that there are some barriers that they see, for instance our cost structure." At least one hurdle will fall once approval to remove the one-time fee is passed in "a few weeks' time".

The move comes amid the Government's recent announcement to cultivate the clean energy industry as an economic growth driver.

Already, A*Star is planning to build a plug-and-play facility by 2009 to test if renewable energies — such as fuel cells and wind power — are suitable for feeding into the national power grid, which currently runs gas- and oil-generated electricity.

In Mr Carlson's view, there are no technical constraints to prevent renewable energy generators from joining the market.

"It's just whether commercially, it's in their interest to do so," he said during EMC's first-ever media briefing on the performance of Singapore's electricity market, the first to open up in Asia in January 2003.

The economy is expected to reap net benefits — defined as production cost savings — of $522 million between 2005 and 2015. The gains in 2003 and 2004 were $128.6 million, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers study commissioned by industry regulator Energy Market Authority.

Liberalisation, which has taken place in stages, has so far allowed only large consumers such as those in manufacturing — which number just 10,000 but make up 75 per cent of total demand — to pick their preferred electricity supplier. However, 1.2 million households remain tied to SP Services.

But the average Joe could have a choice too, if a 2009 pilot trial to let him use "intelligent" pre-paid meters to buy from other electricity providers takes off. When that happens, "we may see more retailers come into the market", said Mr Carlson.

The latest entrant is Keppel Merlimau Cogen, which started operations last month. The other electricity retailers are PowerSeraya, SembCorp Cogen, Senoko Power and Tuas Power. - TODAY/ra