Green Economy Regulatory Initiative (GERI)

The Green Economy Regulatory Initiative (GERI) is a whole-of-Government effort to accelerate innovation in the green economy. Building on a network of existing sandbox programmes (listed below), this initiative supports businesses in seizing new green growth opportunities, developing green products and services, and contributing to our global climate effort.

With agencies leaning in to support innovative, impactful green proposals, projects in the following key areas may be trialled on an expedited timeline through regulatory sandboxes (arranged in alphabetical order):

1. Carbon services and trading
2. Circular economy (plastics recycling and e-waste recycling solutions)
3. CO2 to aggregates
4. Electric vehicles
5. Energy (solar, energy storage systems and smart grid solutions)
6. Hydrogen
7. Sustainable aviation and maritime
8. Sustainable tourism

You may also wish to explore existing programmes (listed below) offered by agencies.

• Regulatory Sandbox - Energy Market Authority (EMA)
  

  EMA offers a sandbox to support energy innovation in Singapore. Sandboxes create “safe spaces” where participating companies may be granted temporary regulatory waivers to test their innovative solutions.

  Find out more on Energy Market Authority (EMA) website.

• Cool Ideas Enterprise
  

  Cool Ideas Enterprise is an open innovation platform for innovators to co-develop solutions that improve the living environment and residents’ quality of life. HDB is looking for solutions in five focus areas – Energy, Urban Greenery, Living Environment, Water and Waste, and Building Technology – that can be piloted in Living Labs islandwide.

  Find out more on Housing & Development Board website.

• Regulatory Sandbox - National Environment Agency (NEA)
  

  The environmental services landscape is fast evolving, with emerging and disruptive technologies and business models that have the potential to reshape economies and industries. In circumstances where it is less clear whether a new technology/solution complies with the regulatory requirements, some companies may be deterred by the risks and choose not to implement it. Promising innovations may be stifled and missed opportunities may happen. Hence, the regulatory sandbox creates an environment where regulations can be relaxed within parameters, so that experiments can take place with managed risks.

  Find out more on National Environment Agency website.

• PUB Global Innovation Challenge
  

  PUB Global Innovation Challenge seeks to accelerate the discovery and adoption of smart solutions and new technologies to improve operational excellence and meet future water needs. PUB invites companies, researchers, and innovators from all around the world to propose solutions to the Challenge.

  Find out more on Public Utilities Board (PUB) website.

GERI supports proposals that demonstrate:

1. Green-economy alignment
   Your idea must clearly be related to the green economy.


2. Desired outcomes
   Your solution must achieve at least one of the following:
   • Reducing greenhouse-gas emissions
   • Optimising waste, water or energy usage
   • Building resilience to climate change


3. Regulatory challenge
   You must face at least one of the following:
   • Regulatory restrictions that hamper development
   • Unclear regulations impeding progress


4. Measurable economic benefits
   Demonstrate clear benefits if applied in Singapore (e.g. jobs creation, revenue generation).


5. Innovation
   Show that your idea is new to Singapore or markedly different from existing solutions in Singapore.

When applying for GERI, ensure your application includes:

1. Contribution to growth of green economy
   Your proposal should ideally support:
   • Jobs creation
   • Revenue generation
   • Skills transfer
   • Intellectual Property anchored in Singapore


2. Demonstration of innovation
   Your proposal should:
   • Not have been trialled or implemented in Singapore before; or
   • Be substantially different from alternative solutions in Singapore


3. Well-defined sandbox scope
   Your proposal should include:
   • Purpose and benefits of a sandbox for your idea
   • Proposed trial duration and safeguards
   • KPIs or assessment criteria to demonstrate sandbox success

• Leverage a streamlined process
  Submit your proposals through our one-stop platform.
• Early agency assessment
  Receive provisional feedback within 30 days to help you manage resources.
• Accelerated trial timeline
  Agencies aim to scope out your sandbox within 4-6 months.
• Risk mitigation
  Execute a small, time-limited sandbox and review outcomes before scaling.