Hong Kong (CNN Business) An inventive new building designed to consume only as much energy as it produces has opened its doors in Singapore.

The National University of Singapore welcomed students to the six-storey facility in January. It's the first time a "net zero energy building" has been built from scratch in the city-state.

Home to the university's School of Design and Environment, the building features an overhanging roof to create extra shade and help keep rooms cool.

Covering the roof are more than 1,200 solar panels that should generate about 500 megawatts of energy a year, slightly more than the faculty and its students are expected to use, according to Lam Khee Poh, dean of the school.

Any excess electricity that might be generated is fed into the school's main power grid, which also acts as a backup supply for the building.

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