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Straits Marine Services introduces COVID-19 ship sanitisation service for maritime sector

The Singapore-based subsidiary of Straits Inter Logistics enters exclusive collaboration agreement with local disinfection and santisation services provider Ecom Solution.

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Singapore-based ship management services provider Straits Marine Services Pte Ltd (SMS) on Tuesday (9 June) introduced a COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) vessel sanitisation service for the maritime sector through an exclusive collaboration agreement with local disinfection and sanitisation services company Ecom Solution Pte Ltd (ECOM).

SMS, the subsidiary of Malaysia-listed bunker player, port operator and investment firm Straits Inter Logistics Berhad (SILB), will be collaborating in offering and marketing the new services to vessels for a period of one year.

ECOM is principally involved in providing disinfecting and sanitisation services to homes and commercial buildings against contaminants such as viruses, bacteria, mould, mildew and odour.

They have a trained and professional disinfection team carrying out their work in line with the guidelines of Singapore’s National Environment Agency (NEA) and have operated in Singapore for over seven years.

With the surge in demand for disinfection and sanitisation services as a result of Covid-19 pandemic, ECOM will now work exclusively with SMS to extend their Services to the vessels operating in Singapore and Malaysia waters.

“Due to the current a COVID-19 pandemic, one of our major concerns as a ship manager of 11 vessels through SMS is the safety of our crew and shore personnel coming onboard the vessels,” said SILB Group Managing Director Dato Sri Ho Kam Choy.

“We had looked around for companies that provide cleaning and disinfection services for vessels in the maritime industry but were unable to find any.

“Most of these disinfection companies are land-based, therefore we decided to introduce this Services into our company so that we will be able to provide these disinfection solutions to not only our fleet but also other vessel operators using the services of ports in both Singapore and Malaysia.”

He added besides Singapore, SILB will begin promoting and marketing the disinfection services to vessel operators using the ports where some of its subsidiaries are bunkering at the moment, covering about nine ports in Malaysia.

Elaborating on the agreement, Straits Marine Services Executive Director Captain Tony Tan Han added: “As we understand, the virus transmits via direct contact or through contaminated surfaces and objects.”

“It will be important for vessels to be disinfected prior to any shore personnel coming onboard as this will minimise the chances of the virus spreading.

“Through this collaboration with ECOM, we will be able to provide specialized cleaning and disinfecting solutions as a complement to our ship management services for the maritime industry.

“Currently, there are about 80,000 ships plying through the Straits of Malacca annually and many of these vessels would require disinfection services when they berth at the ports of Singapore and Malaysia.”

At present, Straits Inter Logistics 55%-owned subsidiary, Tumpuan Megah Development Sdn Bhd operates at nine ports in Malaysia, which include Lumut Port, Pasir Gudang Port, Bintulu Port, Tanjung Pelepas Port, Johor Bahru Port, Kuantan Port, Kemaman Port, Kuala Terengganu Port and Labuan Port, all of which are licensed under Petroleum Development Act 1974 (“PDA Licences”) for its bunkering services.

Currently, SILB group has an enlarged fleet size of 11 vessels with a total carrying capacity of 22 million litres. The company also operates and manages Labuan Liberty Terminal via its 51%-owned subsidiary, Megah Port Management Sdn Bhd.


Photo credit:
Manifold Times
Published: 9 June, 2020

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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.

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RESIZED Sora Shimazaki on Pexels

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.

Related: Singapore: Hin Leong Founder OK Lim gets jail term slashed to 13.5 years

 

Photo credit: Sora Shimazaki
Published: 21 July, 2026

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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.

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RESIZED Drew Beamer

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.

Related: Singapore: Director declares Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping’s inability to continue business
Related: Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping in court over DBS Bank bunker tanker loan
Related: Singapore: Bunker tanker “Coastal Neptune” arrested
Related: Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping, Coastal Logistics tankers enter S&P market

 

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 21 July, 2026

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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.

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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

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