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R E : V I E WM arineBy See Leong Teck, President and Tan Mong Seng, Chief Operating Officer & President (Commercial Business Group)WHILE WE COULD BEpleased with what theMarine sector achievedduring the past year,perhaps our greatest satisfactioncame from seeing our indigenouslydesignedLanding Ship Tank (LST)prove itself on the oceans and gaininternational accolades as a worldclassproduct.SHIPBUILDINGLANDING SHIP TANK CREATINGWAVES AROUND THE WORLDRSS Endeavour, the last LST in theseries of four which we designedand constructed for the Republic ofSingapore Navy (RSN), was launchedin February. During the year, thesecond and third LSTs, RSS Resolutionand RSS Persistence were deliveredto the RSN.The first LST, RSS Endurance,began a very successful maiden voyagein May. Four months later, it hadgained the distinction of being thefirst RSN vessel to circumnavigatethe globe, as well as being the firstRSN vessel to navigate both the Suezand Panama Canals.RSS Endurance’s world tourbrought it to nine ports of call inthe US, Mexico, Canada, the UK,France, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.Visited by senior naval officers atthe various landfalls, the LST left aconsiderable group of admirers inits wake. Most were particularlyimpressed with the very compact,yet highly versatile capabilities ofthe LST, which won it accoladesfor being a distinctly modern andsophisticated vessel.The highlight of the LST’s worldtour must have been its participationin the International Naval Review2000, hailed as “the largest peacetimemaritime event in US history.”It was certainly noteworthy that theLST was part of the fleet of 40 navalships from 24 nations which participatedin the Presidential Review heldon 4th July.The highly successful world tourof the LST was very significant forthe Marine sector.The waves whichthe LST has created around theworld further testify to ourstanding as a world-class shipyardThe LST made a successful maiden voyagearound the world and gained internationalrepute as a world-class product.with the capability to design andconstruct the most sophisticatedvessels for the modern navy.SEALING CLOSER PARTNERSHIPTIES WITH KEY CUSTOMERThe close working relationshipwhich we share with the RSN wasforged through the years as its partnerin building, maintaining andmodernising the RSN fleet. Anothernotable milestone was reached in theyear when the RSN awarded us acontract to construct five frigates toreplace the Missile Gun Boats whichhave been in service for more than30 years.The frigates will beequipped with combat systems thatwill enable them to conduct anti-air,anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare.Theywill also incorporatestealth technology to enhance theirsurvivability.The first frigate is expected to bedelivered in 2005 and all the frigateswill be fully operational by 2009.SHIPREPAIR &CONVERSIONConditions in the shiprepair marketare challenging, but the yard stays ontrack in its pursuit of high valueaddedrepairs and conversions. Andin these fields, it has achieved laudableresults. Our intense marketingefforts have also resulted in anincrease in the number of newcustomers. Compared to 1999, thenumber of new customers in 2000increased by 13%. A total of 343vessels were repaired in 2000,compared to 313 repaired in 1999.MAKING SIGNIFICANTINROADS IN CRUISE VESSELREPAIR MARKETThe year saw the Marine sectormaking further inroads into thecruise vessel repair market.We completed five cruise vesselrepairs during the year. Noteworthyamong these was the refurbishmentand drydocking repair projectcarried out for Norwegian Star, a204m cruise liner belonging toNorwegian Cruise Line.With a 800-passenger and 400-crew carryingcapacity, Norwegian Star is thelargest cruise vessel repaired at ouryard to date.The Marine sector has successfullyestablished itself as another yard of choicefor cruise vessel repairs in the region.re:view • 93