Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Heng Swee Keat encourages global maritime leaders to take greater collective action to drive digitalisation and sustainability
More than 200 high-level maritime industry leaders, experts, policy and decision makers from 37 countries convened in Singapore to discuss key opportunities and long-term challenges for the global maritime industry at the two-day Global Maritime Forum (GMF) Annual Summit. During the opening plenary this morning, Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Heng Swee Keat, outlined how the global maritime industry could take collective action for the future, including renewing the commitment to rules-based multilateralism, advocating maritime sustainability and fostering greater digital connectivity within the maritime value chain.
- Phase 1 – users can obtain approval for all arriving and departing ships from three public agencies – MPA, the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority and the National Environment Agency – through a single portal. The portal will consolidate up to 16 separate forms into a single application. This is expected to save the shipping industry an estimated 100,000 man-hours annually. digitalPORT@SG will also have data exchange with port community systems such as Portnet and Jurong Port Online to receive relevant information including declaration on dangerous goods (DG) operations at the port terminals. The trial, which has started since 1 October 2019 for more than 10 companies, will be progressively rolled out to the industry from December 2019.
- Phase 2 – the system will be enhanced to also serve as a single digital shopfront for booking terminal and marine services, facilitating just-in-time (JIT) operations for optimal vessel passage planning within Singapore port. These enhancements are expected to be operational from 2021.
MPA-DNV GL MoU to spearhead Maritime Research and Development (R&D) and Innovation
- New maritime business and operation models utilising additive manufacturing for ship spares and blockchain technologies for port and shipping processes;
- Market and technical feasibility research of low and zero carbon ship fuels such as Bio-LNG, as well as battery and battery-hybrid for short-sea applications;
- Autonomous and remote controlled ships as well as shore-based operation and control centres; and
- Curate maritime-related thought leadership forums to foster closer collaboration and exchange of views between public and private sector.
At the event, MPA, together with the Singapore Shipping Association (SSA), National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster (NAMIC) and DNV GL also concluded the market feasibility study on additive manufacturing for 100 most commonly ordered marine parts that can guide industry stakeholders to print, test and install selected parts on ships.
DPM Heng is special guest, joining Dr Lam Pin Min, Senior Minister of State for Transport and Health, to witness the signing of an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between MPA and DNV GL