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In focus
- A battery-operated virtual power plant emerges in Singapore
- A Taiwan VC’s pivot to deal-to-deal investing
- TikTok’s continued dominance in Southeast Asia
Hello reader,
I live in the Philippine capital, Manila. So imagine my surprise when my building announced that it would have a scheduled power interruption for 10 hours. When the day came, the blackout lasted for 13 hours – a true horror story for Halloween.
The Philippines has one of the most unstable power grids in Southeast Asia, despite having the second-most expensive electricity rate in the region. So I was pleasantly surprised (and envious) when I learned of Blue Whale, the subject of today’s first Top Story, which runs a battery-operated virtual power plant (VPP) in Singapore.
While the city-state has one of the most stable power grids in the world, it continues to find ways to maintain it amid surging demand for electricity. The country is also in the process of transitioning to cleaner forms of energy.
A battery-operated VPP could help in that regard, as the stored energy of the batteries – which are charged from solar panels – could be deployed during peak hours of electricity demand. VPPs, I learned, were nothing new in Europe and Australia, but it remains uncharted territory in Southeast Asia.
Speaking of something new, we also looked at a Taiwanese VC, backed by the scion of server developer Quanta Computers, and its pivot into a deal-to-deal investing practice. Its managing partner believes this would enable the firm to participate in the funding rounds of the hottest startups in the US.
Delving into something new could be scary. But for this Halloween, we’re hoping this newsletter won’t spook but instead spark something innovative out of you.
Elyssa Lopez, journalist
Top Stories
1️⃣ Can SG run on virtual power plants? This startup thinks so
Blue Whale Energy installs sodium-ion batteries to be recharged from clients’ existing rooftop solar panels, as pictured above. / Image credit: Blue Whale Energy
Blue Whale Energy has an interesting proposition for commercial and industrial facility operators in Singapore. It would install batteries on their solar rooftops for free, but it will take a revenue share for whatever they earn from the setup.
While Blue Whale was only founded last year, it has been named as one of the pilot participants of Singapore’s regulatory sandbox for virtual power plants, together with Nanyang Technological University and SP Group.
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