• Judges acknowledge Synergy Group’s centrality to the Singapore international maritime cluster and the ship manager’s global leadership on decarbonisation and crew welfare issues.

Synergy Group’s contribution to Singapore’s development as an international maritime hub was recognised earlier this week during the prestigious Singapore International Maritime Awards (IMA) 2021 event.

Synergy Group, one of the world’s largest ship managers, won the ‘Maritime Service Provider Award 2021’ at IMA, the marquee event held on 19 April to mark the opening of the 15th edition of Singapore Maritime Week (SMW).

On receiving the IMA ‘Maritime Service Provider Award 2021’, Captain Rajesh Unni, Founder and CEO of Synergy Group, commented: “I’d like to thank Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Singapore government for their fantastic support for Synergy Group and the entire maritime community, especially for their leadership during this pandemic-ravaged year.

“Singapore has grown into what I believe is now the world’s leading maritime hub and that is entirely the result of a singular clarity of policy and purpose from the top down. Our success at Synergy in becoming a global leader would not have been possible without the support and excellent working relationships we have been able to forge around the world and within the Singapore shipping ecosystem, especially with MPA. We very much appreciate this fantastic IMA award.”

The winner of the IMA ‘Maritime Service Provider Award 2021’ was decided following a rigorous adjudication process by an independent panel chaired by MPA. The judges assessed company criteria including quality and growth of global maritime service offerings, leadership qualities within shipping and resilience of operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

IMA judges recognised that Synergy and its subsidiaries have played a leading role in the growth of Singapore into one of the world’s leading maritime centres, with the company’s expansion since it was founded in 2006 bringing depth and expertise to the hub via the skilled managers, researchers and engineers the company trains and employs in Singapore.

They also noted Synergy’s leadership on decarbonisation, its ability to deliver vessel and fleet efficiency gains, its progressive CSR and workforce gender balance values and its leadership throughout the coronavirus crew change crisis – establishing safe crew change corridors and protocols, lobbying governments and championing seafarer mental health on behalf of the Singapore and global maritime community as the humanitarian crisis developed.

Judges concluded that Synergy’s had made a “significant” contribution to “the development of Singapore as an International Maritime Centre”.

Synergy was established in Singapore by Captain Unni in 2006. After starting out with just a handful of ships, the fleet is now almost 400 vessels strong and includes some of the world’s most complex LNG carriers. As well as ship management, Synergy also offers shipbuilding, crew management, training, husbandry, forwarding and travel services.

Synergy is a major customer of Singapore’s ports and shipyards as well as a key component of the Singapore maritime cluster. In November, for example, Synergy completed the successful conversion of a 1992-built, 126,000 cubic meters capacity Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carrier into a Floating Storage Unit (FSU) at Sembcorp Marine’s Admiralty Yard in Singapore.

“The business philosophy for Synergy Group from the beginning was to offer ship owners better productivity and service by investing in human capital to become a thought partner to clients,” said Captain Unni. “Singapore was the perfect location due to the high quality of education and maritime training, plus its world-renowned port and shipyard facilities.”

IMA was attended by a host of maritime executives as well as guest of honour Mr Chee Hong Tat, Singapore Senior Minister of State for Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who presented the ‘Maritime Service Provider Award 2021’ to Synergy Group at IMA 2021.

Receiving the award, Sanjeev Namath, director of Synergy Marine, said: “It is a tremendous honour to receive this award on behalf of the 14,000+ ‘Synergian’ seafarers who have come to think of Singapore as their home away from home.”