The landscape in the Bukit Timah green belt has developed a shiny spot.

Sunny Singapore is now looking into tapping solar energy to power our supply and it is working with the notoriously environmentally-conscious Germans to do it.

Covering the roof of the German European School Singapore at Bukit Tinggi Road, the large flat sheets are expected to harness enough solar energy per annum to power about nine HDB households for a year.

The Solar Roof Project Singapore involved coordination between the private and public sectors of both countries. It is a pilot initiative, in which 100 solar panels are generating 19,000 kWh annually. The electricity is being fed back into the electricity grid and distributed to other users when the school is not using it.

The technology, called Grid Connecting Systems, connects a solar photovoltaic system to the building to harness energy from the sun's radiation. The energy is channelled into Singapore's total power supply and distributed to other users when the school is not utilising it.

The project is an important contributor to exploring into potential and new renewable energy sources.

"This project will help us to assess the feasibility of grid-connected systems in Singapore, the impact on the energy market, the laws governing the use and sale of solar energy, and the positive environmental outcomes it will bring," said Assoc Prof Koo Tsai Kee, Senior Parliament Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, at the launch of the Solar Roof Project Singapore.

This project was financed by a public-private partnership between the German Federal Energy Agency which aims to promote German solar technology and a German solar technology company, Sunset Energietechnik Gmbh.