Around 300 guests from the maritime industry attended a cocktail reception at the National Gallery yesterday, 27 April, to celebrate 25 years of BSM in Singapore. Speakers emphasised the pioneering role of BSM, which was one of the first third-party ship managers in Singapore.

25 years ago, Eurasia, member of the Schulte Group and one of the predecessors of today’s BSM, started its ship management activities in Singapore. With this foundation, the Schulte Group established a second foothold in East Asia besides Hong Kong. In 2008, the four Schulte Group ship management companies – Eurasia Group, Hanseatic Shipping, Dorchester Atlantic Marine, Vorsetzen Bereederungs- und Schiffahrtskontor – merged under the single brand Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement. Today, BSM Singapore is part of a global network of 11 ship management, 25 crew service and four maritime training centres worldwide consolidated under the BSM brand and one of the largest DoC-holders in the state.

At the anniversary celebration, Capt. Raymond Peter, Managing Director of BSM Singapore, took a look at the company’s past, present and future. “At the time, Eurasia started in Singapore with three employees and three ships in management. 25 years later I am proud to say that BSM Singapore employs nearly 240 highly skilled people from 17 different nationalities. Our ship management pool comprises more than 140 ships. We are strongly embedded in the Southeast Asia region and beyond – serving ship owners from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia as well as from Japan, Europe and China.”

BSM Singapore is leading in the management of gas carriers and has a growing fleet of vessels with modern LNG dual fuel engines. “Developing our management capabilities for vessels using alternative fuels such as LNG, but also methanol and ammonia is a high priority for us as we play an active part in the transition to CO2 neutral shipping”, Peter outlined.

Johann Schulte, majority shareholder of the Schulte Group, emphasised the importance of Singapore not just as a hub for BSM but for the entire Group. „Of the different possible locations, the management had considered 25 years ago, Singapore stood out offering pro-business policies as well as a stable and efficient infrastructure for a safe and transparent environment for international companies. This still stands today and more than ever, as Singapore maintains its position as the leading maritime capital of the world.”

Today, in addition to BSM, the Bernhard Schulte House in Singapore hosts Bernhard Schulte Singapore Holdings, established as regional headquarters of the Group. Several Group functions have been shifted to Singapore including a large part of the ship owning business as well as Schulte Group’s maritime digital solutions arm, MariApps Marine Solutions, headquartered in Singapore since 2014.

Today, almost 600 people work for the Schulte Group and its numerous entities in Singapore. “The decision to go to Singapore was spot on”, Schulte concluded. “There are many people we should thank today, namely all past Managing Directors and Capt. Raymond Peter, who now heads BSM in Singapore. In addition, I thank the decision-makers of the time for their vision, foresight and entrepreneurial spirit, in particular Rajaish Bajpaee, who was Managing Director of Eurasia in 1998, and Tobias Pinker, who heads the Group’s regional headquarters and who has been instrumental in the growth of our Group over the past decades.”

Ms. Tan Beng Tee, Executive Director of the Singapore Maritime Foundation and Senior Advisor at the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore attended the event as the guest-of-honour. In her speech, Ms. Tan thanked BSM for being in Singapore for 25 years and congratulated the company for its many achievements over the years. She recalled how BSM started with a small, rented office in International Plaza and under the name of Eurasia headed by Mr. Bajpaee. BSM now owns an office building – the Bernhard Schulte House. From an initial port agency function, the Group has expanded into ship management and other marine services including maritime digital solutions. Ms. Tan also expressed her appreciation to BSM for taking an active interest in developing local talent partnering the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and the Singapore Maritime Foundation to build the next generation of maritime ready workforce. She hoped that Singapore’s partnership with the Schulte Group will grow from strength to strength for many more years to come.