Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Introduction
1.   Good afternoon, everyone. A warm welcome to the Singapore Registry of Ships Forum 2022 (or SRS Forum in short). I am happy to see many familiar faces of our SRS partners today. Special thanks to those who have travelled from overseas to attend this forum and to those who are attending virtually.

SRS and achievements
2.   The SRS was established in 1966 shortly after independence. It was not long after the Geneva Convention on the High Seas came into effect, requiring states to effectively exercise its jurisdiction and control in administrative, technical and social matters over ships flying its flag. This principle was also repeated in the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS which Singapore played a role in bringing together the global community. This gathering is thus timely given the 40th anniversary of UNCLOS this year.

3.   In the earlier days, our SRS was an open registry¹ without set requirements. Substantial efforts were made by the Singapore Maritime Officers Union (SMOU) and the Singapore Organisation of Seamen (SOS) for the International Transport Worker’s Federation to recognise Singapore as a non-flag of convenience, and this became the SRS that the audience is familiar with today from 1989.

4.   Today, the SRS is known as a young and quality registry known for its reliability, efficiency and professionalism. We are also the first registry worldwide to give recognition to shipowners who pursue sustainable shipping, digital transformation and promote the well-being of seafarers.

5.   Within a short time, we already have multiple applications for all categories of the SRS Notations. Our SRS has made good progress this year. This year there are more than 20 new companies who have registered almost 300 vessels with us, with a net growth of more than 1 mil GT in less than a year. We have also continued to keep up our good reputation for low detention² and low incident rates. And to keep ahead of the curve for the future, MPA and the SRS community will need to work together to address the twin challenges of decarbonisation and digitalisation which the audience is no stranger to, as these themes will fundamentally reshape global shipping.

Decarbonisation
6.   First on decarbonisation. As a small, low-lying country with an open economy, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to the adverse impact of climate change. At the same time, there will be many opportunities in the green economy as we embark on the energy transition. We are therefore a strong supporter of global efforts to tackle climate change, and the recent announcement to raise our climate ambition to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 provides a clear target for businesses and MPA to work towards. This joins more than 70 countries globally which have a  net-zero emissions target by 2050 or earlier. It positions Maritime Singapore as the choice location for global investors and stakeholders keen to be part of a growing green economy.

7.   A net-zero emissions commitment guides our maritime efforts for our port infrastructure, logistics and domestic harbour craft sector. And our commitment anchors the stance and trajectory of efforts to decarbonise our maritime sector.

8.   At the company level, the demand of sustainable shipping is a key driver. Companies are seeking to minimise their Scope 3 emissions along their supply chains and individuals are looking to buy their goods with a reduced carbon footprint. I will not be surprised if the international organizations overseeing international transport emissions will raise their level of commitment in time to come, consistent with what the science requires to address climate change, as the costs and impact for not doing so will be far higher. Therefore, from a life cycle perspective to avoid stranded assets, the port terminals, harbour craft sector³ and the international shipping community will need to be clear-eyed about future investments, work on decarbonising the existing stock and upskill our workforce to seize opportunities from this transition.  

Net-Zero Emissions for Port and Domestic Harbour Craft Sector by 2050
9.   Our port terminal operators PSA Corporation and Jurong Port Pte Ltd have net-zero targets for 2050 and have been harnessing solar energy to generate green electricity to support the electrification of port equipment. Smart grid systems, complemented by battery energy storage solutions, are developed to address intermittency from renewable sources and to store green harvested energy that serves as buffers during periods of peak power demand.

10.   The full electrification of harbour craft is on the horizon to reach net-zero emissions. Prices for batteries have fallen more than 85% since 2011⁴ and this is an encouraging trend for us. What we need to work on is to optimise the energy rating and density of the batteries safely to keep them light and compact for ship vessels. I am glad that many companies⁵ are taking part actively in these exciting testbeds which MPA will continue to facilitate. Our collective experience in the design of various propulsion configurations and operating profiles for the shipboard systems will provide a reference for us to work with industry to design the charging capacity and locations of shore charging infrastructure along our fairways and channels.

Green Transition for International Shipping
11.   Turning to the international shipping sector, carbon emissions are continuing to grow and high energy costs in the short-run are likely to impede green transition efforts. We need to incentivise businesses and consumers to take into consideration the actual cost of using the resources and avoid excessive consumption or waste.

12.   I have three suggestions on how the international shipping community can work on the green transition collectively. First, reduce consumption to curb energy-related emissions. Businesses can review their energy consumption within the vessel, and energy used for trips to-and-from the port, identify carbon-and energy-intensive processes, and take steps to change these processes to reduce or avoid emissions. Many more companies are also looking at optimising route planning between ports. Such measures to reduce energy will result in direct fuel savings and business costs for our companies.

13.   Second, design new builds to cater for a decarbonised future given their lifespans and raise energy efficiency substantially. With vessels having a multi-decade lifespan, what we invest in this decade will have a bearing on the emissions profile in the next decade and beyond. The move to pivot away from short-term returns and towards the longer game of environmental sustainability will help to avoid stranded assets or legacy lines of production that may eventually be rendered obsolete as the world heads toward a low and zero-carbon economy.

14.   Many ocean-going vessels are actively enhancing their energy efficiency for their engines, attaching solar panels, testing out attaching a modern kite, or rotors to capture cross-winds to harness wind energy and reduce fuel consumption. If we do these well, these measures which require some additional upfront investments will have paybacks over the lifespan of the vessel.

15.   Third, to use new maritime fuels such as biofuels, green ammonia, methanol and hydrogen. There are still gaps in understanding these fuels for the maritime sector such as the mechanics, training for seafarers and engineers for shipboard engine to combust ammonia safely for instance.

16.   An immediate option is biofuels where we have now developed the world’s first provisional standard for maritime biofuels and the tests for drop-in biofuels up to B50 have been very reassuring. We will work actively on methanol, ammonia and hydrogen and have formed several industry consortiums to turn these gaps into opportunities, and help our shipping community adopt these fuels as soon as they are commercially viable and available.

17.   The SRS is also working with like-minded flag States such as Denmark and various class societies in the mutual recognition of alternative ship designs for vessels equipped with energy efficient technologies. We hope that MPA’s cooperation with various flag States will spur shipowners to develop green technologies, retrofit them in our shipyards and deploy them onboard our SRS vessels.

18.   At the heart of this transition to green ammonia, methanol and hydrogen, we need more cost-effective options to produce and supply these green fuels⁶. As Singapore has limited access to alternative energy, MPA will work closely with our sister agencies and partners, and our industry to aggregate demand, and look for new fuel sources to add to the vibrancy and resilience of our maritime sector.

Digitalisation
19.   The second challenge is on digitalisation. 

Autonomous Vessels
There are encouraging signs for autonomous ships⁷ to be powered differently by green fuels, and navigated and steered with a higher level of automation. These predictions may come sooner than many would have thought. 

20.   I had the opportunity to visit Japan with our tripartite partners in September this year. Japan, like Singapore, is facing the issue of low birth rates and has turned this challenge into opportunity – testing several autonomous vessels in their waters. 

21.   In our waters, MPA has also been supporting the developments and enabling trials for autonomous vessels to take place within our port waters. One of our SRS tug boats, MAJU 510, owned and operated by Keppel Smit Towage, is one of the first in our region that can be operated by joystick control. The tug is fitted with state-of-the-art systems and technologies which fuses data from different sources to conduct risk assessment, make decisions and to automate navigational observations. The tug also has a digital twin which simulate vessel behaviour in multiple scenarios and is the first vessel globally to receive the ABS Remote Control Navigation Notation and the SRS Smart (Autonomous) Notation.

Enhancing Cyber Resilience
21.   Increasing automation and digitalisation of the maritime sector also means that we will increase the surface for potential cyber-attacks. A reported 400 percent increase in maritime cyberattacks in 2020, at the back of a 900 percent increase in attacks targeting operational technology systems in the preceding three years, point to a maritime industry in the crosshairs of malicious cyber actors⁸. Many major shipping lines had their share of cyberattacks in recent years. Our challenge lies in securing our digital domain to ensure a trusted cyberspace for 24/7 real-time operations. Imagine one of your tug boats, where the tug operator’s identity is spoofed and one accidentally clicks on a phishing email with voicemail-themed attachment. This was how the cyberattack on a tug boat in the US was done in 2020.

22.   This shows that our seafarers and crews will need to be supported with training in cyber hygiene. We will need to work with the global technology teams of shipping companies on threat assessments, threat-hunting and incident responses, particularly as we implement 5G over our southern port waters in a few years’ time.

23.   In collaboration with MPA, SMI awarded S$4.77 million to iTrust, the Centre for Research in Cyber Security at the Singapore University of Technology and Design to develop a Maritime Testbed of Shipboard Operational Technology (MariOT) system, in partnership with the American Bureau of Shipping and Singapore Polytechnic’s Centre of Excellence in Maritime Safety. To replicate the onboard experience remotely, the MariOT system will take reference of the ship blueprint with key features such as the propulsion, machinery and power system as well as the navigation, cargo management and communication system. This offers a realistic yet effective testing environment without disrupting any actual vessel operations, and serve as a platform to train maritime professionals and students through cyber exercises and drills.

Developing Digital Twins
24.   As we develop the cyberspace, we are currently working with our Institutes of Higher Learning to develop a digital twin model for our port and port waters. One can visualise this - digital twins over three layers – the sea surface, the air above and subsea layers, where we aggregate various geospatial data together into visualisation models for real-time operations. For example, we are testing the use of aerial delivery drones for maritime services for cases beyond the visual-line-of-sight such as sending 3D-printed parts for maintenance and testing of bunker samples.

25.   Having a digital twin integrated with the layers from sea surface and air will help our start-ups and enterprises optimise the design of drone flight paths, taking into the safety considerations. The digital twin serves as a “living laboratory” for service and solution providers to develop, test and validate new technologies and solutions in real-world setting before implementing them. Such a seamless maritime picture – intertwined with sea surface, air, subsea and cyber domains will drive the digital efforts for our collective future. With 5G coverage over our anchorages, fairways, port terminals, and boarding grounds by 2025, there will be many technology and economic opportunities for our companies and Maritime Singapore.

Key Enabling Factors to Decarbonise and Digitalise
26.   You may ask how will MPA and Maritime Singapore enable the decarbonisation and digitalisation efforts? I have met many of you with the MPA team in the past few months and with our tripartite partners, we had a fruitful trip to Japan and I have just returned from the Eisenhower Fellowship to the US where I spent several weeks with the HQs of our US-based companies in the maritime sector, government agencies and the research community on clean energy and hydrogen, and developing our green and digital corridor with the US. Our MPA team has also just returned from the UN Climate Change conference in Egypt. As we head overseas, we will also visit the research community and government authorities to address the green and digital challenges, and likewise when we visit your HQs in Europe, Asia and Oceania next year, we will continue to evolve, update our approach and build on our ecosystem. I will summarise our ideas briefly:

27.   First, for nascent technologies, we will continue to work with our Institutes of Higher Learning, the global R&D community and your technology and R&D leads to push the boundaries and unlock green growth possibilities. In the US for instance, nanoscientists have demonstrated the use of new catalysts that can convert ammonia into hydrogen fuel at ambient pressure using light energy where this is done usually at high temperatures and pressures. Hydrogen engines for aviation are no longer a distant dream, as companies are developing such engines for deployment in a few years’ time. Engines for new maritime fuels are not far from commercialisation. We will work closely with your R&D teams to support the deployment of new engines and technologies.

28.   Second, for maritime solutions and technologies that are near or ready for deployment, we will actively pursue pilots with industry, develop standards and an enabling-regulatory environment, aggregate demand and study enabling infrastructure to improve commercial viability. Precisely because both decarbonisation and digitalisation are multi-year opportunities, our seafarers can participate in SailMAP that is structured as a multi-year programme to incentivise them to upskill so that they possess these specialised skillsets to stay relevant. We will also work with our engineers, surveyors and the maritime community to support this transition. I thank many of you for coming forth with vessels, global expertise and encourage all of you to continue to bring your global experts in sustainability and new maritime fuels, and digital domains to come to Singapore, and work on projects with us.

29.   Third, we need to proliferate and scale the deployment of new technologies and solutions which can benefit the regional and global community. When more venture and equity capital, or private financing flows into sustainability and digital projects, marinetech startups and companies, both local and overseas, can help to accelerate deployment and drive new business opportunities. For instance, MPA is engaging financiers to draw their interests to invest in the green technologies for our domestic harbour craft, which will enable our SMEs and shipping companies to electrify their fleets. We are also actively developing a number of green and digital corridors with overseas partners. We have signed such an arrangement with the Port of Rotterdam and just last week, announced that we have begun formal discussions with the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach which we hope to conclude next year.  Several more are in the pipeline. These will help to build institutional capacities strengthening Singapore and the global network, harmonise standards for new fuels, enhance digital and cybersecurity efforts and provide many exciting opportunities for the R&D community and industry. We will also expand such collaboration and efforts in support of the IMO and key maritime institutions.

30.   To this end, we have reviewed our Green Ship Programme this year to increase the incentives for vessels running on low- and zero-carbon fuels, with up to 100% reduction in initial registration fees and 100% rebates in annual tonnage taxes for vessels running on zero-carbon fuels such as ammonia. I am heartened to see that 29 ships coming from 17 of our SRS owners have been awarded the Green Ship Programme over the past year, with two from the NYK Group running on Methanol. Thank you to Okuma-san who is in the audience today.

31.   The SRS is the first ship registry globally to introduce notations for our registered vessels. RightShip, the world’s largest maritime due diligence organisation, has recognised the SRS Green Notation⁹. Our SRS ships that have been awarded with the Green Notation will have the notation proudly displayed on RightShip’s platform. I would like to encourage everyone here to work on registering more green and automated vessels with the SRS. This can be those which can run on dual fuels, those fitted with wind-assisted sails, or those that will use the green maritime fuels, and work with like-minded technology and commercial developers to conduct trials.

Conclusion
32.   Ladies and gentlemen, the SRS serves as a core backbone of Maritime Singapore, and MPA will continue to work with you to enhance our pro-enterprise environment to attract ship owners worldwide to register more vessels under the Singapore flag. I encourage all of you to also help us convey to your global Headquarters our strong commitment to work with your teams in Singapore to deepen our partnership and collaboration, and to chart the future together with you, and your global R&D and technology teams for decarbonisation and digitalisation, and have more of your Sustainability and Technology teams based in Singapore.

33.   On this note, I would like to congratulate the Evergreen Group for registering the highest nett gross tonnage with the SRS over the past year, and we look forward to growing your fleet further with us. Thank you Ms Molly Mok who is here with us today.

34.   Our shipping sector is a vibrant and forward-looking community. This is why we host the Singapore Registry of Ships Forum so that stakeholders like yourself can gather and to meet in person. Thank you for joining us today, and our SRS partners for your continued support in keeping our SRS flag high. To our overseas guests, enjoy the food in Singapore and fair winds and following seas for your return journey. I wish all of you an invigorating and fruitful session ahead. Thank you. 

Footnotes:
¹ There were no set requirements regarding ownership, management, and manning of ships
² Whitelisted in Tokyo and Paris MOUs and requalifying for USCG QualShip 21
³ Include pilotage and towage services
⁴ https://www.statista.com/statistics/883118/global-lithium-ion-battery-pack-costs/
⁵ MPA and SMI Joint Call for Proposals 2020 on Harbour Craft Electrification
⁶ International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Global Hydrogen Trade to Meet the 1.5oC Climate Goal – Trade Outlook for 2050 and Way Forward Part 1, p. 97. To supply these green fuels progressively, the production of renewable energy needs to be at least triple from today’s 290 gigawatts (GW) per year to more than 1 terawatt (TW) per year by mid 2030s
⁷ https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/01/why-the-future-of-shipping-is-looking-green-and-autonomous
⁸ Cooperation on Maritime Cybersecurity. Atlantic Council in-depth research and reports, Oct 2021.
⁹ The SRS Notations were announced at the SRS 55th Anniversary Forum and was launched in November 2021. The SRS was the first ship registry in the world to introduce notations for its vessels and there are 4 categories of the SRS Notations, namely Cyber, Green, Smart and Welfare.