Singapore government has unveiled a SGD $100 million marine and offshore engineering support package for the next five years.

This package will support workers and companies to adopt productivity solutions and build capabilities in new growth areas such as offshore wind and digitalization.

The investment was announced on November 19 by the minister of trade and industry Alvin Tan at Offshore Energy Week (OSEA) 2024 last week.

Singapore had the honour to host OSEA for the 25th time running, according to Tan. The event brought together more than 500 exhibitors from the marine and offshore supply chain and around 18,000 visitors from 70+ countries.

With a focus on showcasing the latest technologies and sparking insightful discussions, OSEA 2024 offers an excellent platform, minister said, to exchange ideas.

Mr. Tan emphasised Singapore’s national target to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

“On our part, our marine and offshore industry has an important part to play by supplying and also by developing green energy. For example, you have floating solar farms, offshore wind, tidal energy and also cross-border carbon capture, utilisation and storage,” the minister said.

“And it needn’t be a huge step, you can take small steps along this decarbonisation journey. For example, you can start by either retrofitting or converting existing vessels to help these vessels adopt cleaner fuels or hybrid propulsion systems,” Tan added.

The Singapore’s minister referred to companies that have been frontrunners in this decarbonisation journey by retrofitting their vessels with ammonia-powered systems or by using fuel-efficient propulsion systems.

“These are just some good examples of retrofitting and turning the way that you fuel your vessels”.

The minister also highlighted the transformative technologies and initiatives that drive decarbonization, mentioning the example of Southeast Asia’s first hybrid crew transfer vessel (CTVs).

He stressed that the government would lead the way and play an important role in supporting the industry. “Singapore’s maritime and offshore industry has made great strides over the past 49 years,” Alvin Tan noted.

“We expect these initiatives to benefit around 100 Singapore enterprises and 150 GWEC members over the next two years.”