Business

Singapore celebrates ‘Day of the Seafarer 2019’ to thank seafarers

New drop-in centre providing facilities and services for seafarers calling at Pasir Panjang Terminal opened.

Published

7 years ago

June 25, 2019

Admin

In conjunction with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) ‘Day of the Seafarer’, a new international drop-in centre for seafarers was opened on Tuesday (25 June) at the Pasir Panjang Terminal Building 5 by Captain M. Segar, Assistant Chief Executive (Operations) of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA).

Managed by the Mission to Seafarers (MTS), the new drop-in centre will provide a wide-range of facilities and services that will benefit about 20,000 visiting seafarers who call at Pasir Panjang Terminal each month.

These include free Wi-Fi, computers with internet, telephone service, light refreshments, reading materials, and entertainment such as TV, soccer table and dart boards. There will also be an on-demand shuttle service where seafarers can reserve a seat on the bus to the drop-in centre, on top of scheduled bus services.

The 36 square-metre facility will open daily from 10am till 10pm, and is the second international drop-in centre managed by MTS. There are three other drop-in centres located at Jurong Port, Keppel Terminal and Pasir Panjang Terminal Building 1.

Since 2004, drop-in centres for seafarers were introduced at Singapore's port terminals to allow visiting seafarers to make phone calls home, surf the web and relax in the lounge area. Other than drop-in centres, MPA also offers seafarers competitively-priced and well-furnished accommodation at the Singapore Mariners' Club, which is located near the Central Business District.

At the event, MPA also distributed a grant of S$150,000 in total to the Apostleship of the Sea, the Danish Seamen’s Church, the International Lutheran Seafarers' Mission, the Mission to Seafarers Singapore, and the Norwegian Seamen's Church to support their wide range of welfare services for seafarers, ranging from ship visitations to counselling services and pastoral care at the mission centres.

As in previous years, MPA, together with Jurong Port (JP), PSA, the Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union (SMOU), and the Singapore Organisation of Seamen (SOS), will jointly present 600 gift hampers to ships calling at Singapore. The hampers containing food and gift items have been put together to encourage bonding and promote the well-being of seafarers. The hampers will reach about 9,000 seafarers as an appreciation for their contributions.

In 2010, the IMO designated the 25th of June as the ‘Day of the Seafarer’ to recognise and celebrate the contributions of the 1.5 million seafarers worldwide. With more than 90% of world trade being carried by sea, seafarers provide a vital service that drives the shipping industry and more importantly, keeps the global economy going. IMO has set the theme for this year’s ‘Day of the Seafarer’ as ‘I am On Board with gender equality’, focusing on the importance and contributions of women in a wide range of maritime careers especially in seafaring.

Quah Ley Hoon, Chief Executive of MPA, said, “Women seafarers only make up two per cent of the total number of seafarers sailing the high seas while just a third of global shore-based maritime positions are filled by women. We need to do more to bridge this gender gap by bringing greater awareness of this profession to the masses. MPA, working with partners such as the Singapore Maritime Foundation, is working hard to attract more people to join the sector which offers plenty of opportunities regardless of their gender.”

Photo credit: Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore
Published: 26 June, 2019

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

18 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

18 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

18 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