Increasing Initiatives across Southeast Asia to Reduce Carbon Emissions Drives the District Cooling Market

According to MarkNtel Advisors, the South East Asia District Cooling Market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 9.8% during the forecast period of 2022-27. The growth of the market is driven primarily by several township developments in urban areas of South East Asia, such as the construction of multi factory buildings, five-star hotels, business parks, high-rise building towers, mixed land use development in metropolitan cities, such as Bangkok, Jakarta, & Kuala Lumpur.   

Besides the urban development activities, the Southeast Asian countries are committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, with improvements in urban cooling projects and comprehensive municipal enforcement of building standards. For instance:

• Singapore, in 2021, announced cutting down its peak emissions of 2030(65 million tons) to almost 50% (nearly 33 million tons) by 2050 through the increased use of solar energy for power generation, better energy usage management, & reduced water consumption.

Moreover, the ongoing construction projects for urban developments in countries like Thailand, Singapore, & Malaysia, including the retrofitting of some high-rise buildings and the construction of the new buildings as per the green building standards, have also surged the demand for district cooling systems.

Currently, the new technology has been introduced wherein Thermal Energy Storage (TES) technology solution uses a new Phase-Change Material (PCM) that would store & release cold energy since it changes between liquid & solid states. The stored cold energy would be released gradually in a district cooling plant to mitigate cooling peak loads in commercial buildings.

This solution, designed & developed jointly by the National University of Singapore (NUS) & Keppel DHCS Pte Ltd. (KDHCS), a wholly-owned subsidiary of KI, would improve the energy-carrying capacity by up to three times of a conventional chilled water storage system & yield over 10% cost savings annually. Moreover, it would help companies save costs & maintain the balance of carbon emissions, further states the research report, “South East Asia District Cooling Market Analysis, 2022.”

Electric Chillers Held a noticeable Share in the South East Asia District Cooling Market

Among all production techniques, Electric Chillers held a noticeable market share due to their coefficient of performance (COP) or the ratio of refrigeration produced to the energy consumed that ranges between 1.0-8.0, which is more than absorption chillers (0.54 to 1.1), thereby providing more energy efficiency. Moreover, at times, the shipment of absorption chillers is done in parts, owing to their heavier weight & larger size than electric or compression chillers, which makes the latter easy to transport & handle. There are many electric-chiller-based plants in Thailand. For instance:

• Thai Shinryo Ltd. constructed a Chiller Plant at The New Government Complex, Bangkok. The scale of the project was Absorption Chiller (1,600 RT × 2 units), Electrical Chiller (2,000 RT × 1 unit), Electrical Chiller (1,000 RT × 1 unit.)

Hence, the production cost & simplified logistics of electric chillers are the prime aspects attributing to their significant market share, and the same trend is likely to be followed over the forecast years.  

Singapore & Thailand are the Major Markets for District Cooling Systems in South East Asia.

The construction of eco-friendly towns in Thailand & Singapore would lead these countries to capture a substantial share in the District Cooling Market. The leading market players are substantially investing in developing technologies for energy-efficient cooling systems for commercial buildings. Moreover, a few proposed district cooling projects in these countries are projected to contribute to the overall market growth in the coming years.

These include The Forestias, a Mixed-Use Complex (Hotel, Office, Condo, Hospital, Retail, Residential) with 10,000 RT (Tons of Refrigeration) cooling capacity, and another mixed-use complex One Bangkok (Hotel, Office, Condo, Hospital, Retail) with 38,000 RT cooling capacity, further cites MarkNtel Advisors in their research report, “South East Asia District Cooling Market Analysis, 2022.”

Key Market Competitors

According to MarkNtel Advisors, the leading players in the South East Asia District Cooling Market are Trane, Keppel DHCS, ENGIE Group, SP Group, Mitsui & Co., Shinryo Corporation, Gas District Cooling (M) Sdn. Bhd., Veolia, Fujita Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd., KJ Technical Services Sdn. Bhd.

Key Questions Answered in the Study

1. What are the current & future trends in the South East Asia District Cooling Market?
2. How has the industry been evolving in terms of geography & service adoption?
3. How has the competition been shaping across South East Asia, followed by their comparative factorial indexing?
4. What are the key growth drivers & challenges for the South East Asia District Cooling Market?
5. What are the customer orientation, purchase behavior, and expectations from district cooling service providers across South East Asia?

Market Segmentation:

1. By Country (Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Rest of SEA)
2. By Production Technique (Free Cooling, Electric Chiller, Absorption Cooling, Others (Heat Pumps etc.)
3. By End-User (Hospitality, Healthcare, Commercial Offices, Transportation, Industries, Residential Buildings, Retail, Others (Government Buildings, etc.)
4. By Competitors (Trane, Keppel DHCS, ENGIE Group, SP Group, Mitsui & Co., Shinryo Corporation, Gas District Cooling (M) Sdn Bhd, Veolia, Fujita Engineering & Construction Co., Ltd, KJ Technical Services Sdn. Bhd)