Buying electricity in Singapore
Singapore’s energy market was liberalised on 1 November 2018. The Electricity Open Market (EOM) initiative by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) was initially tested in Jurong. Following its success in Jurong, the EOM initiative will be applied in stages throughout Singapore until May 2019.
Background
The EOM initiative was first tested in Jurong in April 2018 as a test programme to gather resident responses. The test was meant to determine if energy liberalisation would be officially rolled out across the whole of Singapore. The test was considered a success as more than 30% of the total number of households and businesses in the area switched to an alternative energy retailer.
Following the first test in April 2018, energy liberalisation was conducted in stages across different parts of Singapore according to postal codes.[1] The dates for the various stages are as such:
| Dates | Postal Code |
| 1 November 2018 | Households and business companies with postal codes that begin from 58 to 78. |
| 1 January 2019 | Households and business companies with postal codes that begin from 53 to 57, 79 to 80, 82 and 83. |
| 1 March 2019 | Households and business companies with postal codes that begin from 34 to 52, and 81. |
| 1 May 2019 | Households and business companies with postal codes that begin from 1 to 33. |
Before the electricity market was liberalised, SP Group was the sole electricity provider that supplied electricity islandwide. SP Group is a company that provides electricity and gas transmission and distribution services in Singapore. Consumers bought electricity from SP Group at a regulated tariff that changes every 3 months of the calendar year.[2]
EOM retailers
SP Group still remains responsible for delivering power to consumers. However with the Electricity Open Market (EOM), consumers now have a choice of buying from energy retailers other than SP Group. Consumers have the option of either continuing to purchase electricity from SP Group or changing to another retailer. As of 2019, there are 13 electricity retailers participating in the OEM. These are - Best Electricity Supply, Environmental Solutions (Asia) Pte Ltd, iSwitch, Keppel Electric, Ohm Energy, PacificLight Energy, Sembcorp Power, Senoko Energy Supply, Geneco by Seraya Energy, Sunseap Energy Group, Tuas Power Supply, Union Power Ptd Ltd, Diamond Electric.[3]
Red Dot Power was one of the 14 retailers that participated in the test launch in Jurong.[4] However, as compared to other retailers, the company was charging higher rates and got significantly lower customers. In early 2019, electricity retailer Red Dot Power left the EOM, citing financial difficulty as the reason for their departure. The customers under Red Dot Power were be transferred back to SP Group. The existing security deposits were used to pay their latest electricity bill and the remaining amount were subsequently refunded.
The price plan offered by SP group is the highest among all retailers. As compared to the retailers who have lower production costs, SP Group has to transmit the electricity and maintain their equipment, which results in a higher production cost that is passed on to consumers in the form of higher tariff prices.[5] Electricity retailers also implemented non-price strategies such as solar energy plans and special promotions and packages.
Electricity consumption in Singapore
Electricity consumption habits differ from family to family. Consumers may visit the OEM website (official website) when calculating and considering the most suitable energy retailer and plan. As of December 2018, the average electricity consumption (kWh) levels according to housing type are as such[6]:
| Housing type | Average electricity consumption (kWh) |
| HDB 1-Room
HDB 2-Room HDB 3-Room HDB 4-Room HDB 5-Room HDB Executive |
125
164 244 324 376 454 |
| Condominium | 471 |
| Terrace | 808 |
| Semi-Detached | 1,052 |
| Bungalow | 2,143 |
Regulated tariffs are subjected to change every 3 months of the calendar year. The changes in regulated tariffs can be viewed on the Energy Market Authority Website (official website).
Electricity tariffs consist of fuel cost, which changes according to market conditions, and non-fuel cost.[7] The non-fuel cost is inclusive of the cost of power generation cost, grid charge, market support service (MSS) fee and power system operation and market administration fees. The tariff rate from 1 January to 31 March 2019 is $0.2552/kWh, inclusive of GST.
Price plans[8]
The 2 main plans for all EOM retailers (subjected to name changes for different companies) are the ‘Fixed Price’ plan and ‘Discount-off-tariff’ plan. The ‘Fixed Price’ plan allows customers to pay a fixed amount regardless of the amount of electricity used. The ‘Discount-off-tariff’ plan provides customers with discounts off their regulated tariff bill.
| Calculating the cost (SGD) of each plan
Case study: If 100kWh of electricity was used in a month | |
| Fixed price plan
($0.1958/kWh) |
100kWh (electricity consumed) x $0.1958/kWh (price/kWh) =
$19.58 |
| Discount off tariff plan
(15% off regulated tariff) |
100kWh (electricity consumed) x $0.2552/kWh (regulated tariff rate) x 0.85 (discount off tariff rate) =
$21.692 |
The specific plans and contracts for each EOM retailer are as such:
Best Electricity Supply (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| BEST Home Fixed | 6 months
12 months 24 months |
$0.1958 per kWh (with GST)
$0.1900 per kWh (with GST) $0.1798 per kWh (with GST) |
| BEST Home Saver | 12 months
24 months |
15% off regulated tariff
21% off regulated tariff |
| BEST Home Saver Upfront | 24 months | Up to 17% cash rebates |
Diamond Electric (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| Freedom |
|
20% off regulated tariffs |
| Sure save plus rebate- res | 12 months | 24% off regulated tariffs |
Environmental Solutions (Asia) Pte Ltd (Official Website)
ES Power provides Carbon Neutral electricity to households, encouraging consumers to use more sustainable forms of energy.
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| G Locked (Fixed) | 12 months
24 months |
$0.1799/kWh (with GST)
$0.1794/kWh (with GST) |
| G Freedom (DOT) | 12 months
24 months] 36 months |
23% off regulated tariff
23.20% off regulated tariff 23.40% off regulated tariff |
| G Flexi | 12 months
24 months |
23% off regulated tariff
23.50% off regulated tariff |
Geneco by Seraya Energy (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| Get it fixed 12
Get it fixed 24 Get it fixed 36 |
12 months
24 months 36 months |
$0.2033/kWh (with GST)
$0.1798/kWh (with GST) $0.1788/kWh (with GST) |
| Get it less 24 | 24 months | 22% off regulated tariff |
| Get free sundays |
|
$0.2250/kWh (with GST. Mon to Sat)
$0 (Sun) |
| Give us a try | 6 months | 20% off regulated tariff |
iSwitch (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| ‘Chope’ the rate | 12 months
24 months |
$0.17655/kWh (with GST)
$0.1755/kWh (with GST) |
| Super Saver Discount | 12 months
24 months |
22.8% off regulated tariff
23% off regulated tariff |
| iPromo- iPad | 36 months | 5% (w/o GST) off regulated tariff |
Keppel Electric (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| Fixed12
Fixed24 Fixed36 |
12 months
24 months 36 months |
$0.1871 /kWh (with GST)
$0.1798 /kWh (with GST) $0.1798 /kWh (with GST) |
| DOT3
DOT24 |
24 months
24 months |
22.0% off regulated tariff
22.0% off regulated tariff |
| KNIGHT | 24 months | $0.2020 /kWh (with GST): Peak rate for 7am to 11pm
$0.1616 /kWh (with GST): Off peak rate for 11pm to 7am |
Ohm Energy (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| Fixed Ohm | 6, 12, 24 months | $0.1798/kWh |
| Simply Ohm |
|
$0.1739/kWh |
| Market Ohm |
|
$10.70/month |
| Ohm Discount | 6, 12 months | Up to 255 off regulated tariff |
PacificLight Energy (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| Stick to it | 12 months
24 months |
$0.2008/kWh (with GST)
$0.1892/kWh (with GST) |
| Confirm save | 12, 24 months | 16% off regulated tariff
16% off regulated tariff |
| Save while sleeping | 12, 24 months | 21% off regulated tariff (11pm to 7am)
11% off regulated tariff (7am to 11pm) |
Sembcorp Power (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost (with GST) |
| No contract plan |
|
$0.1755/kWh |
| Fixed price plan | 12 months
24 months |
$0.1856/kWh
$0.1798/kWh |
| Discount off tariff plan | 12 months
24 months |
21% off regulated tariff
21.80% off regulated tariff |
| Flat fee 300 plan
Flat fee 450 plan Flat fee 600 plan Flat fee 900 plan Flat fee 1250 plan |
12 months
24 months 12 months 24 months 12 months 24 months 12 months 24 months 12 months 24 months |
$0.5599/kWh
$0.5299/kWh $0.8299/kWh $0.7999/kWh $1.0999/kWh $1.0699/kWh $1.6399/kWh $1.6099/kWh $2.2699/kWh $2.2399/kWh |
| Sunshine Plan | 12 months | $0.2140/kWh (7am to 7pm)
$0.2531/kWh (7pm to 7am) |
Senoko Energy Supply (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost (with GST) |
| LifePower12
LifePower24 |
12 months
24 months |
$0.1795/kWh
$0.1894/kWh |
| LifeSave12
LifeSave24 |
12 months
24 months |
14.5% off regulated tariff
17.25% off regulated tariff |
Sunseap Energy Group (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost |
| (Fixed Plan)
Sunseap-One Sunseap-50 Sunseap-100 |
6 months
12 months 24 months 24 months 24 months |
(with GST)
$0.1803/kWh $0.1848/kWh $0.1798/kWh $0.2161/kWh $0.2301/kWh |
| (Discount off tariff)
Sunseap-One Sunseap-50 Sunseap-100 |
6, 12, 24 months
24 months 24 months |
23% off regulated tariff
15% off regulated tariff 10% off regulated tariff |
Tuas Power Supply (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost (with GST) |
| PowerDo | 6 months
24 months |
18% off regulated tariffs
21% off regulated tariffs |
| PowerFix | 18, 25, 36 months | $0.1798/kWh |
Union Power Ptd Ltd (Official Website)
| Plan | Contract | Cost (with GST) |
| Dual Value Saver | 24 months | 22% off regulated tariffs |
- ↑ Tang, See Kit. “Singapore to open up retail electricity market from November: What it means for consumers”. Channelnewsasia. Updated October 1, 2018. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-to-open-up-retail-electricity-market-from-november-10766440
- ↑ Tang, See Kit. “Singapore consumers can choose electricity provider from November”.Channelnewsasia. Updated September 24, 2018. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/electricity-price-plans-choose-open-market-sp-group-10743764
- ↑ “Retailers”. Energy Market Authority. Updated January 4, 2019. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.ema.gov.sg/retailers.aspx
- ↑ Teh, Cheryl. “Red Dot Power exits electricity market in Singapore”. Straitstimes. January 5, 2019. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/red-dot-power-exits-electricity-market-in-singapore
- ↑ “Why electricity retailers' rates are better”. Straitstimes. January 23, 2019. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.straitstimes.com/forum/letters-in-print/why-electricity-retailers-rates-are-better
- ↑ “Tariff rates”. SPgroup. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved form: https://www.spgroup.com.sg/what-we-do/billing
- ↑ “Electricity Tariffs”. Energy Market Authority. Updated December 31, 2018. Accessed on 30 January 2019. Retrieved from: https://www.ema.gov.sg/Residential_Electricity_Tariffs.aspx
- ↑ Prices and plans were accurate at time of writing and may be subjected to change in the future.