Singapore port eyes digitalisation, decarbonisation

The port of Singapore is launching initiatives to digitalise and decarbonise its infrastructure and the bunkering sector, as it seeks to strengthen its long-term competitiveness as the world's largest bunkering hub.

The port's "transformation towards quality, resilience and sustainability will improve marine bunkering and the maritime sector as a whole", senior minister of state for transport and foreign affairs Chee Hong Tat said at the 21st Singapore International Bunkering Conference yesterday.

Apart from strengthening regulations and enforcement measures, Singapore will also push to further digitalise the transmission of data between buyers and sellers to make bunker transactions more secure.

As part of its sea transport industry digital plan, the government will provide each small and medium-sized enterprise with up to S$30,000/yr ($22,000/yr) to cover up to 70pc of the costs of going digital in areas such as software subscription, professional services and training, as well as up to 50pc of their hardware costs.

The government will also stimulate the adoption of electronic bunker delivery notes (e-BDN), which will automate the transmission of mass flow meter data to delivery notes. "Using e-BDNs will cut down the number of administrative and manual steps required from vessels [and] it also makes bunkering transactions more secure by reducing the opportunities for manipulation of data during the transmission process," Chee said.

Having adjusted to and generally complied with the International Maritime Organisation's (IMO) 2020 regulations that cap sulphur content in marine fuels at 0.5pc, the marine fuel industry must now tackle the IMO's next target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50pc from 2008 levels by 2050.

Singapore is therefore developing its LNG bunkering infrastructure, standards and procedures as it sees LNG as a "viable transitional fuel to mitigate CO2 emissions from ships". The Maritime and Port Authority has so far issued LNG bunker supplier licences to FueLNG and Pavilion Gas and plans to increase the number of licensed LNG bunker suppliers in Singapore in line with rising commercial demand for LNG. Pavilion Gas is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore's Pavilion Energy and FueLNG is a joint venture between Shell and Singapore' Keppel Offshore and Marine.

The Singapore port will also begin offering ship-to-ship LNG bunkering services by the first quarter of 2021. "Singapore will have an LNG bunker supply capacity of up to 1mn t/yr from 2021, translating to about 300/yr ship-to-ship LNG bunkering operations to large LNG-fuelled vessels," Chee said.

Singapore will also invest in green shipping fuels that are carbon neutral, as it sees LNG mostly as a transitional fuel. It signed a cooperation agreement yesterday with the port of Rotterdam and Japan's land, infrastructure, transport and tourism ministry to develop a future fuels port network.

The agreement will be instrumental in the "development of a roadmap on the adoption of future marine fuels to support decarbonisation and the coordination of possible joint bunkering pilot runs with identified shipping lines between ports", Chee said.

By Sammy Six