Nadia Ahmad Samdin on Building Control (Amendment) Bill

A proposed Mandatory Energy Improvement (MEI) regime will bring buildings of different ages on board Singapore’s journey towards energy efficiency. MP Nadia Ahmad Samdin welcomed the move as one that will help close the gap in fulfilling the nation’s commitment to greening 80 per cent of its buildings by 2030. She noted that buildings, especially commercial ones, often comprise multiple tenants with varying levels of energy consumption. She asked how the Government can support building owners in relaying the requirements of the MEI regime and mandating tenants to implement energy-efficient measures within their leased units. In older buildings where energy consumption by different stakeholders cannot be accurately captured and consumption levels do not fall after implementing measures laid out in their Energy Efficiency Improvement Plan (EEIP), how can building owners be supported to stay on track? Ms Nadia said building owners must be educated on effective solutions and consider longer-term maintenance plans as well as whether some of the costs should be factored into tenants’ leases. She asked if the Government foresees an increased take-up of the Green Mark Incentive Scheme for building owners to undertake significant retrofitting work, and if there are other sources of funding for owners looking at smaller-scale retrofitting. She spoke in Parliament on Tuesday (Sep 10).