Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

Government committed to supporting Singapore’s maritime hub status

SINGAPORE--The Republic is an ideal maritime hub for companies to access growth opportunities in Asia Pacific at a time when the industry is poised for recovery, and the government here is committed to help the sector develop the necessary infrastructure and talent.

SINGAPORE--The Republic is an ideal maritime hub for companies to access growth opportunities in Asia Pacific at a time when the industry is poised for recovery, and the government here is committed to help the sector develop the necessary infrastructure and talent.

This is according to Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport Ms Josephine Teo, who reiterated the government’s initiatives on this front when speaking at the opening of the 13th Asia Pacific Maritime (APM) conference today (Wednesday).

“We continue to invest in port infrastructures, well ahead of demand. We’re expanding Pasir Panjang Terminal to increase the capacity to 50 million TEUs per annum, and the first set of new berths will be ready later this year,” she said.

“In the longer term we plan to consolidate our container port operations at Tuas with a capacity of up to 65 million TEUs,” Ms Teo said, adding that the government is supporting productivity growth and innovation in the industry through schemes such as the S$25 million Productivity Programme under the Maritime Cluster Fund.

The biannual APM this year is hosting over 1,500 exhibitors and over 15,000 visitors from across the world. This is partly driven by anticipation for growth in Asia, which will see its share of global seaborne trade rise to over 40 per cent, according to IHS.

And Singapore – already one of the busiest ports globally – will continue to gain relevance as an international maritime hub against this backdrop, Ms Teo noted.

“Our maritime cluster today is vibrant, comprising more than 130 international ship groups and more than 5000 maritime companies across the full range of industry,” she said. “We are well positioned to serve as a gateway to Asia, and provide a platform for businesses to benefit from the shifting of centre of gravity to this region.” WONG WEI HAN

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.