Singapore prepares decarbonisation blueprint

The MPA is committing additional funds of at least SG$300 million to support initiatives outlined in the blueprint which will contribute to Singapore’s commitments under the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, Paris Agreement and the Initial IMO Strategy on reduction of GHG emissions from ships.

It takes on board the recommendations made by the International Advisory Panel on Maritime Decarbonisation and input from public sector-specific consultations.

The Blueprint outlines seven key areas which MPA will focus on to support the decarbonisation of the maritime industry:

1 Port terminals – transit towards a low-carbon future through the adoption of cleaner energy, automation, and digitalisation, to achieve at least 60% reduction in absolute emissions from 2005 levels by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050.

2 Domestic harbour craft – all harbour craft will operate on low-carbon energy solutions by 2030 and full electric propulsion and net zero fuels by 2050. This will achieve a 15% reduction in absolute emissions from 2021 levels by 2030 and a 50% reduction in absolute emissions from 2030 levels by 2050.

3 Future marine fuels, bunkering standards and infrastructure – be ready for a multi-fuel bunkering transition to support the future of international shipping by supplying low and zero-carbon marine fuels including biofuels, methanol, ammonia, and potentially hydrogen, while enabling green technologies such as carbon capture, storage and utilisation.

4 Singapore Registry of Ships – recognise and incentivise owners to operate green ships, working towards 50% of the fleet to be green ships by 2050.

5 Efforts at IMO and other international platforms – be a standard setter and bridge builder, advocating for strong, credible, and inclusive climate action at the IMO and international fora.

6 Research & development and talent – be a global hub for maritime decarbonisation R&D, enabled by a vibrant ecosystem with talent and expertise to develop and deploy innovations.

7 Carbon awareness, carbon accounting and green financing – be a green maritime finance hub by promoting green financing landscape and strengthening carbon accounting and reporting.

The MPA is also developing a Next Generation Vessel Traffic Management System (NGVTMS) to replace the current Vessel Traffic Information System (VTIS).

With data analytics and machine learning to identify traffic hotspots as well as advanced algorithms to predict potential collision situations, the NGVTMS will provide MPA and vessel masters with more accurate and timely information to react to and avert incidents.

In addition, the NGVTMS will leverage the on-going digitalisation of the maritime industry and global developments such as the IMO’s e-Navigation initiative to enhance ship-shore digital information exchange. This will provide MPA and port users with better situational awareness based on common sets of information, enabling better communication and thus operational efficiency and safety.

The NGVTMS will also leverage potential communication technologies (e.g. VHF Data Exchange System and 5G) to provide reliable and secured means of communications between ship-ship and ship-shore.

The NGVTMS will be developed through prototyping, leveraging Open System Architecture and agile methodology. The first system will be deployed at the new Port Operations Control Centre (POCC) in Tuas Port by 2025.

As part of its digitalisation efforts, the MPA is planning for new applications such as maritime drone surveillance, Remotely Assisted Pilotage Advisory and remotely piloted/autonomous vessels. This will require low latency, high bandwidth and secure wireless connectivity in port waters, which the MPA says a 5G network can potentially provide. It is therefore leveraging the 5G open testbed at its Maritime Drone Estate to spur the development of 5G solutions. It envisages the adoption and widespread use of 5G applications in the next two to three years.

The MPA is promoting the digitalisation of shipping documentations starting with the Bill of Lading as a key legal document in cross-border trade. In 2021, Singapore was amongst the first shipping and trading hubs to enact a legislative framework for electronic transferable records like electronic Bill of Lading.