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His Excellency, Mr Hiroshi Ishikawa, Ambassador of Japan to Singapore,

Mr Jeremy Nixon, CEO of Ocean Network Express,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1.     Thank you for inviting me to the second edition of the Container Shipping Summit by Ocean Network Express (ONE). 

2.     I’d like to congratulate ONE on celebrating your fifth anniversary in Singapore just two months back, after establishing your global headquarters here in 2018. You have grown steadily over the past five years and are among the largest liner operators in Singapore, with over 200 vessels and about 900 staff. 

3.     You have also been a strong and close partner in our journey to transform the maritime industry. ONE established a Green Strategy Department in Singapore in 2021 to drive the company’s sustainability efforts and encourage collaboration with key stakeholders. ONE has actively supported our digitalPORT@SG and cybersecurity initiatives, and also championed the development of maritime talent through internship and talent management programmes. We are grateful for your continued partnership and contributions to Maritime Singapore over the years.

4.     Your presence in Singapore at this point in history is key. ONE played a very important role in supporting global supply chains through the pandemic. Singapore served as a catch-up port and amidst global port congestion, our port workers, unions, industry and government representatives worked round the clock to ensure that goods were delivered. The digital tools and software models used by ONE planners to forecast shipping demand, stow containers and plan routes supported global supply chains, and helped our maritime hub remain resilient throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

5.     Today, ONE has gathered this distinguished group to look for solutions, trends and opportunities in container shipping. I will share on three areas of opportunity Singapore’s Ministry of Transport sees for the maritime industry to flourish in an age of disruption.

Decarbonisation

6.     Looking ahead, the first area of opportunity is the decarbonisation of the maritime sector. As Vice-Chair of the Marine Environment Protection Committee at the International Maritime Organization, Singapore actively worked with fellow member states to adopt a Revised Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy for global shipping. Over the next two years, Singapore and fellow Member States will work on the Comprehensive Impact Assessment and discuss measures which can be adopted to help reach the enhanced levels of ambition in the Strategy.  

7.     We are committed to accelerating decarbonisation by acting now and working collaboratively with stakeholders in the maritime sector and beyond. The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has been working closely with partners to support our maritime sector in making this transition. MPA has established Green and Digital Shipping Corridors with like-minded partners such as the Port of Rotterdam, the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach to develop and pilot green and digital solutions and standards. We will also be developing more of such corridors with our partners from Northeast Asia. We welcome partners to join us in developing, piloting and scaling these solutions to increase the demand for new maritime fuels and explore new business models.

8.     We are also making steady progress in preparing our port to bunker new maritime fuels. I am happy that as of June this year, the sales of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and biofuel blends have exceeded the sales for the whole of last year, showing a greater adoption of cleaner fuels. We expect steady growth in the coming months. 

9.     Just last week, MPA and various partners including Maersk, Hong Lam Marine, METS, Vopak, Mitsui & Co., and the American Bureau of Shipping successfully conducted the first methanol bunkering operation in Singapore. This is the culmination of almost a year of intensive preparations amongst 28 agencies, partners and institutes to identify potential risks, establish preventive measures, and develop methods for control and mitigation. For example, we worked with our Singapore Civil Defence Force to develop a methanol fire-fighting course to prepare operators and seafarers for the bunkering operation and we will fine-tune this before rolling it out more widely. We were also able to work with our universities and research institutes to forecast lightning risks, air flows and water currents to better prepare for different scenarios.

10.    We will continue to work with partners to prepare for the potential introduction of new maritime fuels, such as methanol, ammonia and hydrogen, in the coming years. 

Innovation

11.    The second area of opportunity lies in the strengthening of Singapore’s maritime R&D and innovation ecosystem. Since its establishment in 2018, the PIER71 programme has supported over 100 MarineTech start-ups which have cumulatively raised over S$50 million in investments. More than 50 maritime corporate partners, including ONE, have also supported these start-ups to co-develop solutions for Singapore and overseas markets in the Asia-Pacific. 

12.    We welcome overseas research institutes to partner our local R&D community. MPA has worked with the Singapore Maritime Institute to establish four maritime research Centres of Excellence focusing on important subjects such as maritime energy and sustainability, modelling and simulation for next generation ports, maritime safety, and autonomous shipping. For example, an area of interest is how rapid advancement in artificial intelligence and machine learning could enhance route planning and the stowage of containers to save resources and fuel.

Talent Development

13.    Lastly, we won’t be able to fully seize opportunities in decarbonisation or innovation unless we have a strong pool of maritime talent.  We are committed to supporting our partners in training workers and preparing our students for the maritime sector.

14.    MPA also offers the Global Internship Award to provide students with on-the-job training and global exposure at international maritime companies in Singapore and overseas. 

15.    The Singapore Maritime Foundation, together with our industry partners, also offers the MaritimeONE scholarship to nurture students in institutes of higher learning and encourage them to take up internship and work-study programmes in the maritime industry. 

16.    For senior maritime professionals, MPA also seeks to nurture leadership competencies, and encourage network-building through the Maritime Leadership Programme. 

17.    We are glad that ONE has actively participated in these talent programmes. ONE has also developed a local talent management programme which provides job rotations, leadership opportunities and upskilling to groom future leaders of the industry. We look forward to working with more like-minded partners to grow our maritime talent pool.

Conclusion

18.    To conclude, I would like to thank ONE for its strategic role in enabling collaboration amongst all stakeholders. It is at forums like this where new ideas and projects are sparked, and partnerships are strengthened. We will continue to work closely with all our partners to co-create solutions to seize opportunities and overcome future challenges.

19.    I wish everyone a fruitful discussion ahead, and to our overseas guests, have a wonderful time in Singapore. Thank you.