Business

Singapore: LNG bunkering course included in Enhanced Training Support Package

From 5 Oct 2020 to 30 Jun 2021, maritime employers who send employees for selected sector-specific training will receive 90% subsidy from course fees.

Published

6 years ago

October 6, 2020

Admin

The Enhanced Training Support Package (ETSP) to the marine & offshore sector, an initiative under SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) and the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), will extend enhanced course fee support for liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering.

From 5 October 2020 to 30 June 2021, marine & offshore employers who send their employees for selected sector-specific training programmes will receive enhanced course fee support at 90% of course fees. This is on top of the enhanced absentee payroll that has been extended to all sectors from 1 May 2020.

ETSP will encourage maritime companies to upskill their employees in the current downtime and position themselves for subsequent recovery and growth, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Heng Swee Keat during its launch on Monday (5 October).

For a start, SSG is partnering with the National University of Singapore, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore Polytechnic and NTUC LearningHub to offer a total 38 courses for the sector including electrical power engineering and shipyard safety.

The range of training courses also covers emerging skills such as automation and robotics, cyber security and digital transformation.

SSG and EDB have been working closely with stakeholders such as marine & offshore companies, and the Association of Singapore Marine Industries (ASMI) to understand the sector’s training needs, and to put together these measures to upskill the employees and help the sector recover.

“Through strong cooperation between the Government and the Association, the Marine & Offshore Engineering community is grateful for the reliefs and grants given till date, to help companies tide over this difficult time and adapt to a new normalcy moving forward,” said Simon Kuik, President of ASMI.

“The extension of the enhanced course fee support to the sector comes as a timely support to facilitate the transformation of the industry.

“Through the reskilling and upskilling of our core talent pool of workers, we hope that they will be more productive through digitalisation and be ready in the new growth areas such as offshore renewable and LNG.”

The ETSP initiative was earlier introduced as part of the Stabilisation and Support Package announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Mr Heng Swee Keat at the Resilience Budget this year.

Effective since 1 March 2020, over 121,000 training places have been taken up under the package. More than 41,000 employees across more than 1,000 enterprises in the targeted sectors have benefited from the initiative.

“The current economic slowdown provides an opportunity for companies in affected sectors to reskill and upskill their workforce. I encourage companies to take a long-term view, and to tap on this enhanced training support to build up their workforce competencies for the future economy,” said Ong Tze-Ch’in, Chief Executive of SSG.

“The impact of COVID-19 on the global marine & offshore industry is severe and expected to last for some time. However, there continues to be significant growth opportunities,” notes Chng Kai Fong, Managing Director of EDB.

“EDB will partner marine & offshore companies in their transformation efforts, especially in the areas of digitalisation and automation, while preserving jobs and capabilities during this challenging period.”

Photo Credit: Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore
Published: 6 October, 2020

Legal

Singapore withdraws remaining 127 charges against Hin Leong founder OK Lim

Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges on 17 July.

Published

14 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Founder of collapsed oil trader Hin Leong Trading, Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, has had the remaining 127 charges against him withdrawn, according to The Straits Times on Monday (20 July).

OK Lim was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges, including those for cheating, on 17 July. The discharge means Lim cannot be prosecuted again for the same offences.

Lim, 84, is currently serving a 13½-year prison sentence after the High Court reduced his original 17½-year jail term in March 2026. He was convicted in 2024 on two cheating charges and one count of abetting forgery in a case prosecutors described as one of Singapore’s most serious trade finance frauds.

Lim was convicted in May 2024 of two charges of cheating the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and one count of abetting forgery that proceeded to trial out of a total of 130 criminal charges.

He was first charged in court on 14 August 2020, and was subsequently handed further charges in court on 25 September 2020, 30 April 2021 and 24 June 2021 for his role in perpetuating fraud on various financial institutions.

A total of 130 charges were eventually brought against him for cheating and forgery-related offences.

Photo credit: Sora Shimazaki
Published: 21 July, 2026

Winding up

Singapore: Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd to be wound up voluntarily

Coastal Logistics was reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

Published

14 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Several resolutions for Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd were made during an extraordinary general meeting held on 14 July, according to a notice in the Government Gazette on Friday (4 July).

The following resolutions were duly passed during the meeting:

As Special Resolution

That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the meeting that the Company cannot by reason of its liabilities continue its business and accordingly the Company be wound up voluntarily pursuant to Section 160(1)(b) of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (No. 40 of 2018);

As Ordinary Resolutions

that Mr. Wong Pheng Cheong Martin and Ms. Koay May Yee, both care of FTI Consulting (Singapore) Pte Ltd, One Raffles Quay, #27-10 South Tower, Singapore 048583 be appointed as the joint and several Liquidators of the Company for the purpose of such winding up; and
that the Liquidators be at liberty to open, maintain and operate any bank account(s) or account(s) for monies received by them as Liquidators with such bank(s) as they deem fit; and
that a Committee of Inspection will not be formed.

Manifold Times previously reported Nicholas James Gronow, director of Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping and Coastal Logistics, filed statutory declarations for both companies stating the firms cannot continue their businesses due to liabilities.

Both companies were reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

In 2019, several vessels owned by both firms entered the sale & purchase (S&P) market in Singapore.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 21 July, 2026

LNG Bunkering

PIL’s LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on LNG and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Published

14 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

PIL's LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

Singapore-based Pacific International Lines Pte Ltd on Monday (20 July) said its first 13,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessel, Kota Elok, recently made her maiden call to Singapore on 15 July.

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

The vessel also incorporated energy-saving features and digital technologies to reduce fuel consumption and enhance operational performance, as well as a bow windshield to improve aerodynamics, contributing to improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions over the course of long-haul voyages.

“Following Singapore, Kota Elok will continue her voyage on our East Coast Service 1 (ES1) route to South America, calling at ports in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina before returning to Asia,” the company said in a social media post.

Kota Elok also became PIL’s first vessel to receive Lloyd’s Register certification for compliance with the IACS UR E26 and UR E27 cyber security requirements.

Developed by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), UR E26 and UR E27 are mandatory cyber resilience requirements for newbuild vessels contracted from 1 July 2024.

Photo credit: Pacific International Lines
Published: 21 July, 2026