06 September 2012

Mr Pang Kin Keong, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transport

Mr Matthew Chan, Chief Executive Officer, Jurong Port Pte Ltd

Ladies and Gentlemen

A very good afternoon and a warm welcome to the official opening of our new lighter terminal Marina South Wharves (or MSW for short).

We are very honoured to have with us today, Mr Pang Kin Keong, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transport, to officially declare MSW open later.

For MPA, MSW has been a labour of love spanning three years and costing $16 million, and we are very pleased to see its completion.

We are also very pleased to be able to hand the completed MSW over to its appointed operator Jurong Port Pte Ltd. Jurong Port is well experienced in operating lighter terminals, being the current operator of Penjuru Terminal.

With its opening, MSW will complement Penjuru Terminal, particularly for lighter vessels serving ships in our Eastern anchorages.

A Brief History

Some of you will recall that prior to 2008, we had two lighter terminals in Singapore - Pasir Panjang Lighter Wharves and Marina Wharves, that had served us well for many years. However, both terminals had since had to make way for other developments.

In 2008, Pasir Panjang Lighter Wharves was relocated to Penjuru Terminal to make way for the development of Pasir Panjang Terminal Phases 3 and 4. Penjuru Terminal is strategically located in the West of Singapore and well sited to serve the Western anchorages.

Subsequently, in 2009, Marina Wharves was also relocated to make way for the development of Marina Coastal Expressway. The lighter operations at Marina Wharves were temporarily relocated to Penjuru Terminal pending the development of MSW.

With today's official opening of MSW, we are back to having two lighter terminals, one each to serve the Eastern and Western anchorages.

MPA is acutely aware of the disruptions and inconvenience caused to lighter operators by the relocations of the lighter terminals over the past few years. We are very appreciative of their understanding and I would like to thank all the lighter operators for their understanding and for their partnership over the years.

Importance of the Lighter Industry

Our lighter operators are an integral part of Maritime Singapore and they provide a vital service to the many ships calling here. With some 120,000 vessel calls per year, the importance of the lighter operators to the Port of Singapore cannot be overstated.

Our lighter operators and our lighter terminals form part of the supply chain to supply ships in the Port of Singapore with all the essential goods that they need. These include daily necessities for the crew like food, drinks, medicines and household items, and also ship stores and supplies like ropes, lubricants, ship machinery and other spare parts.

We currently have about 50 lighter operators operating a fleet of some 310 vessels in the Port of Singapore. Together, they made about 50,000 calls at the lighter terminal last year and handled 650,000 tonnes of cargo. These are certainly not small numbers and highlight the importance of our lighter operators and importance of our lighter terminals as the conduit for the delivery of critical ship stores and supplies to vessels in the Port of Singapore.

Marina South Wharves

The opening of MSW is set to bring about several benefits for the lighter operators and ships calling at the Port of Singapore. For one, with it being located nearer the Eastern anchorages, lighter vessels will be able to save on travel time, which in turn allows for cost savings and higher service levels.

Another benefit is the innovative operating systems and processes that Jurong Port is putting in place at MSW. Mr Matthew Chan will be in a better position to share more on these with you in a moment.

Conclusion

Ladies and gentlemen, this just leaves me to thank my colleagues, our contractors and our partners from the industry, including the lighter operators and Jurong Port, for all the hard work that made the development and official opening of MSW possible.

I wish Jurong Port and the lighter operators using MSW all the very best in your operations here. May you have many years of prosperous and safe operations.

Thank you very much.