Despite the global economic turbulence and the shipping industry’s woes in 2011, the port of Singapore chalked up impressive statistics last year, firming up its reputation as one of the busiest ports worldwide.
Singapore posted record-breaking numbers in cargo and container handling, vessel arrival tonnage and bunker sales, according to advance estimates announced by Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs Lui Tuck Yew at the Singapore Maritime Foundation New Year cocktail reception on 12 January 2012.
Container throughput gained by 5.3 percent to 29.9 million 20-foot containers in 2011 over the previous year’s 28.4 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The 2011 figure topped 2008’s record by about 0.1 percent, or more than 21,000 TEUs, said Lui.
Cargo throughput in 2011 also reached a new record, growing 5.4 percent year-on-year to 530.5 million tonnes.
In vessel arrival tonnage, Lui said Singapore handled an all-time high of 2.12 billion gross tons to exceed 2010’s level of 1.92 billion gross tons.
Top contributors to the gross tonnage figures were container ships (31 percent of total gross tonnage arrivals) and tankers (30.8 percent). Singapore breached the 2 billion gross tonnage mark on December 13, 2011 with the arrival of the container ship APL Washington into Pasir Panjang Terminal.
Singapore also held on to its position as the world’s top bunkering port, with about 43.15 million tonnes of bunker sales in 2011, up from 40.85 million tonnes in 2010, said Lui.
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore in a statement on its website said that the Singapore registry of ships grew by 17.6 percent, or 8.6 million gross tons, in 2011. “As of end December 2011, the total tonnage of ships under the Singapore flag was 57.4 million GT, putting Singapore among the top 10 ship registries in the world,” it said.
Photo by Ariaski
