SINGAPORE: Singaporean families living in private properties will receive S$400 in Climate Vouchers to purchase more efficient appliances, Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong announced on Tuesday (Feb 18).

In his Budget 2025 speech, Mr Wong also said that families living in Housing Development Board (HDB) flats will also get an additional S$100 in Climate Vouchers, on top of the S$300 worth from last year.

"To fully realise our green future, we will need to make lifestyle adjustments and adopt sustainable habits in our daily lives. Every individual action counts," said Mr Wong.

"I encourage all households to make the switch to more resource-efficient products if you have not done so already."

The vouchers are part of the Climate Friendly Households Programme, which was expanded to all HDB flats last year. 

They come in a mix of denominations – S$2, S$5, S$10 and S$50 and can be used to buy 10 types of energy- and water-efficient household products. 

The Climate Vouchers are valid until Dec 31, 2027, and can be used at over 150 participating retailers with more than 500 outlets to purchase energy- and water-efficient household products.

With this latest expansion to include private households, the programme will cover around 90 per cent of households in Singapore, said the National Environment Agency (NEA), national water agency PUB and the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) in a media release.

TACKLING EMISSIONS AND CLIMATE RISKS

In his speech, Mr Wong also shared how authorities will "accelerate" efforts to decarbonise the transport sector, which accounts for about 15 per cent of Singapore's total emissions today.

He said that Singapore is making "good progress" towards the previously-stated target of having 100 per cent cleaner energy vehicles by 2040, and pointed out that in 2024, around a third of all new cars registered were Electric Vehicles and almost half were hybrid vehicles.

However, adoption of clean energy variants of heavy vehicles has been slower, said Mr Wong.

As such, the government will introduce a new Heavy Vehicle Zero Emissions Scheme and an Electric Heavy Vehicle Charger Grant. These schemes will provide incentives for the purchase of clean heavy vehicles and co-funding of the charging infrastructure, he said.

The Ministry of Transport will share more details on the schemes during the Committee of Supply debate.

Mr Wong also announced that authorities will be introducing the Additional Flat Component (AFC) of road tax for electric heavy goods vehicles and buses.

The AFC will be set at S$250 per year for electric heavy goods vehicles, and $190 and $550 per year for electric minibuses and large buses, respectively. It will be phased in over three years starting January next year and fully implemented by January 2028.

While Singapore reduces its emissions, it must also continue to protect itself against climate risks, added Mr Wong. It has and will continue to employ various coastal solutions such as the planned development of "Long Island", a reclaimed island situated at East Coast Park's shoreline.

While the implementation of the measures could stretch over two decades or longer, starting from the 2030s, it would be prudent to set aside funds now to ensure that authorities can proceed with these investments, said Mr Wong.

He announced a S$5 billion top up to the Coastal and Flood Protection Fund, which was set up in 2020 with an initial injection of S$5 billion.

"The government is taking steps to green our energy and transport sectors, and to protect our island from climate risks. Singaporeans too, have a part to play in this," said Mr Wong.

"Sustainability is everyone's responsibility. Individuals have the power to drive change through their choices and behaviour."