SIBCON 2026: Singapore Builds Optionality Across Marine Fuel Pathways

Singapore is deliberately refusing to bet on a single winning marine fuel, instead building the standards, infrastructure and operational capabilities to support several pathways at once, Senior Minister of State for Law and Transport Murali Pillai told delegates at the 24th Singapore International Bunkering Conference (SIBCON) on Wednesday, according to OPIS reporting.

"With the future fuel mix still uncertain, Singapore has decided not to bet on a single winning fuel but is instead building optionality — preparing several pathways so that, as demand develops, we have the standards, infrastructure and operational capabilities to support different fuels safely and at scale," Murali said. "Our role is not to pick one winner, but to build capabilities that give industry credible choices."

Ammonia is one such pathway: the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and Enterprise Singapore have launched a new technical reference for ammonia bunkering, while LNG capacity continues to expand. Singapore sold a record 571,400 metric tons of LNG bunkers in 2025, and sales in the first eight months of 2026 reached roughly 436,000 tons — up about 23 to 24 per cent year on year, MPA data cited by OPIS show.

The port will also conduct its first ethanol bunkering operation later this week, involving a Maersk vessel, supplier Golden Island and PSA Singapore, with around 5,000 tons of ISCC-certified bioethanol to be delivered at PSA's Pasir Panjang Terminal — expected to be the world's largest ethanol bunkering operation to date. MPA, CMA CGM and Singapore LNG Corporation have additionally signed a memorandum of understanding to explore liquefied bio-methane as a marine fuel.

The multi-fuel direction matters for trading houses active in the region. Alkagesta, the global commodity trading house with a growing Singapore presence, has positioned the city-state as a hub for its Asia-Pacific marine fuels activity, and the standards and infrastructure now being built at the world's largest bunkering port shape the operating environment for every supplier and trader in the market.