Asia/Pacific News
Singapore's MPA Sees Self-Regulated LNG Bunkering Industry
A Singapore Maritime Port Authority (MPA) director wants his country's Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) industry to be self-regulating and state policy intervention to be minimized, IHS Maritime 360 reports.
Parry Oei, director of port services division for the MPA, made the comments during the Gastech 2015 conference in Singapore.
He told delegates that the city-state is trying to harmonize LNG bunkering with existing industry standards, and he remarked to IHS Maritime that "LNG bunkering has very strict and controlled procedures; we hope that the industry will regulate itself."
The MPA embarked on a pilot program in 2014 to work out the operational protocols for LNG bunkering by 2017; the program is assessing different modes of LNG delivery, including ship-to-ship and terminal-to-ship transfers, to determine the most cost-effective method.
Oei, who views Singapore's investment in LNG terminals as a long-term solution to shipping emission concerns, said, "We are committed in the long term [for LNG bunkering] because of its benefits to the industry and country.
"It [LNG bunkering] may not pick up in five years, but maybe it will happen in 10 years' time."
In July, the MPA announced its first Request for Proposal (RFP) for interested parties to apply for the LNG bunker supplier licence; the timeline for submitting proposals expired at the end of September, and a shortlist will be announced in December of this year.
