Legal

Monitoring and surveillance activities by UK against illicit maritime activities including STS oil transfer

UK authorities were looking out for illegal bunkering or illegal ship-to-ship fuel transfer amongst other activities involving North-Korean flagged vessels from mid to late June, says Japan government.

Published

10 months ago

June 25, 2024

Admin

Royal Navy HMS SPEY, Offshore Patrol Vessel

United Kingdom authorities were on the lookout for illegal bunkering or illegal ship-to-ship fuel transfer amongst other activities involving North-Korean flagged vessels from mid to late June, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan on Monday (24 June).

The ministry said the Royal Navy HMS SPEY conducted monitoring and surveillance activities against illicit maritime activities, including ship-to-ship transfers with North Korean-flagged vessels prohibited by the United Nations Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs), in waters surrounding Japan.

It was the twelfth time for the UK Royal Navy vessel to engage in such activities to take place since 2018.

“Japan welcomes these activities from the viewpoint of ensuring effective implementation of the relevant UNSCRs in solidarity with the international community toward the realisation of North Korea’s dismantlement of all weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles of all ranges in a complete, verifiable, and irreversible manner,” the ministry said.

As Japan has also been conducting information gathering activities for vessels suspected of violating the UNSCRs, the ministry added that Japan works closely with relevant countries and international organisations, including the United Kingdom.

Photo credit: UK Ministry of Defence
Published: 25 June, 2024

Winding up

Singapore: Annual general meetings scheduled for Xihe Holdings subsidiaries

Development includes Da Xin Tankers, Dong Sheng Tankers, Dong Ya Tankers and Hua Zhong Shipping; meetings will be held electronically on 7 and 8 May, according to Government Gazette notices.

Published

21 hours ago

April 23, 2025

Admin

Several notices were published on the Government Gazette on Tuesday (22 April) regarding the annual general meetings of the companies and creditors to be held electronically on 22 April for Xihe Holdings subsidiaries.

The subsidiaries are Dong Sheng Tankers Pte Ltd, Da Xin Tankers Pte Ltd, Dong Ya Tankers Pte Ltd, and Hua Zhong Shipping Pte Ltd.

Annual general meeting for Dong Sheng Tankers are to be held on 8 May at the following times:

For the company: 2pm

Annual general meetings for Da Xin Tankers are to be held on 7 May at the following times:

For the company: 10am
For the creditors: 11am

Annual general meetings for Dong Ya Tankers are to be held on 8 May at the following times:

For the company: 10am
For the creditors: 11am

Annual general meetings for Hua Zhong Shipping are to be held on 7 May at the following times:

For the company: 2pm
For the creditors: 3pm

The agenda for all the meetings are:

To receive an update on the liquidation.
To receive an account of the Liquidators’ acts and dealings, and of the conduct of the winding up

Manifold Times previously reported on the winding up of Da Xin Tankers, Dong Ya Tankers and Hua Zhong Shipping Pte Ltd and the appointment of the joint and several liquidators of the firms.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 23 April, 2025

Business

Notice of intended dividend issued for defunct bunkering firm Coastal Oil Singapore

Company’s former Chief Finance Officer received a nine-year jail sentence in 2021 after pleading guilty to 15 charges for conspiring with others to defraud eight banks into approving USD 320 million in loans.

Published

7 days ago

April 17, 2025

Admin

A notice was published in the Government Gazette on Wednesday (16 April), regarding the second and final intended dividend to creditors of defunct bunkering firm Coastal Oil Singapore Pte Ltd.

The following are details of the notice of intended dividend of the company:

Name of Company : Coastal Oil Singapore Pte. Ltd. (In Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation)
Unique Entity No. / Registration No. : 200413975N
Address of Registered Office : 1 Raffles Quay, #27-10, South Tower, Singapore 048583
Last Day of Receiving Proofs : 30 April 2025
Name of Liquidator : Yit Chee Wah
Address : c/o FTI Consulting (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.,1 Raffles Quay,#27-10, South Tower, Singapore 048583

In 2021, the former Chief Finance Officer of Coastal Oil Singapore received a nine-year jail sentence at the State Courts of Singapore.

Ong Ah Huat earlier pleaded guilty to 15 charges; the charges include three counts of engaging in a scheme to defraud and nine counts of forgery for conspiring with accomplices to defraud eight banks into approving USD 320 million in loans.

The banks involved were: China Merchants Bank (Singapore), Bank of Communications (Hong Kong), BNP Paribas (Hong Kong), Cooperative Rabobank (Hong Kong), DBS Bank (Hong Kong), HSBC (Hong Kong), OCBC (Hong Kong), and Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong).

In 2019, Manifold Times reported Hong Kong-listed COSCO SHIPPING International (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd stating its indirect wholly-owned bunkering subsidiary Sinfeng suspecting fraud to be involved in the liquidation of Coastal Oil Singapore during December 2018.

It was believed Coastal Oil Singapore owed approximately US $357 million to 79 firms. Out of the total USD 357 million, banks were the hardest hit taking up about US $354 million, or 99.1%, of total credit owed.

A complete coverage of the events leading to the current development has been arranged by Singapore bunker publication Manifold Times (in descending date order) below:

Photo credit: Benjamin-child
Published: 17 April, 2025

Business

Singapore: Director of Sinco Shipping declares inability to continue business

Sharma Mohit Krishnabhagwan, director of Sinco Shipping, lodged a statutory declaration stating the company cannot by reason of its liabilities continue its business; liquidators have been appointed as well.

Published

1 week ago

April 16, 2025

Admin

A director of Sinco Shipping Pte Ltd filed a statutory declaration (SD) stating that the company cannot continue its business due to its liabilities, according to a 15 April (Tuesday) notice on the Government Gazette.

In the SD, the director, Sharma Mohit Krishnabhagwan, said meetings of the company and of its creditors have been summoned for 28 April.

According to SGP Business website, a business platform for business and individuals, the company’s main business was in shipping including chartering of ships and boats with crew (freight) with renting.

In another notice, it was stated that Mr Lau Chin Huat and Mr Yeo Boon Keong, Licensed Insolvency Practitioners, both of Technic Inter-Asia Pte Ltd, c/o 50 Havelock Road #02-767 Singapore 160050, have been appointed as joint and several provisional liquidators of the company on 11 April.

In a third notice on the Government Gazette, the liquidators said a meeting of creditors of the company will be held by way of video conference via Zoom (deemed venue : 50 Havelock Road, #02-767 Singapore 160050) on 28 April at 11:30am, for the following purposes:

To lay a full statement of the company’s affairs together with a list of creditors and the estimated amounts of their claims;
To nominate Liquidator(s) or confirm the nomination of Liquidator(s) by member(s);
To consider and if thought fit, appoint a Committee of Inspection consisting of not more than 5 persons, whether creditors or not, for the purpose of winding up the company; and
Any other business.

To attend, creditors have to nominate and vote thereat their Proof of Debt and a proxy form must be lodged with the liquidators no later than 4pm on 25 April 2025.

A copy of the Proof of Debt form, proxy form, a statement showing the names of all creditors and the amount of their claims . This notice has been dispatched to all known creditors of the company.

Any other person claiming to be a creditor of the company as at this date may write to the liquidators to request for copies.

Creditors would need to register their attendance by email to [email protected] no later than 4pm on 25 April 2025 to receive instructions on how to join the video conference via Zoom.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer on Unsplash
Published: 16 April, 2025