In temperate countries, heating is usually used only in late autumn and winter, and air-conditioning in summer only during very hot weather. Furthermore, Singapore is an urban and indusrialised city-state with no rural base. Nevertheless, there is ample room for Singapore to improve on its energy efficiency performance. Likewise, energy savings of similar magnitudes can also be achieved in commercial, institutional and industrial buildings. Another example is in the manufacturing sector where motors are estimated to use three-quarters of the industry's electricity.
Every factory has motors pumping essentially against friction.
As a result, the company's capital cost was also reduced. There is thus great potential for savings and increased cost-competitiveness even in the competitive manufacturing sector. The return on investment in this case can be significantly larger than other cost-cutting measures that may not add to the competitive structure of the company, such as retrenchment of experienced staff. This requires heavy capital investment. Over the next 40 years, an estimated 570 to 720 ha of land will have to be set aside for power plants and transmission stations.