Speech by Mr Lim Chee Onn, Executive Chairman of Keppel Corporation at the launch of the Keppel Professorship and the Keppel FELS Book at Keppel FELS Pioneer Yard on 19 September 2002 Your Excellency, President SR Nathan of the Republic of Singapore, and Chancellor of the National University of Singapore, Professor Shih Choon Fong, President of the National University of Singapore, Distinguished Guests, Fellow Directors & Keppelites, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is my pleasure to welcome all of you to Keppel FELS Pioneer Yard for the launch of the Keppel Professorship. The establishment of this NUS Chair is our contribution to help develop Singapore as a Centre of Excellence for Ocean, Offshore and Marine Technology. Mr President, it is especially significant to have Your Excellency grace this happy occasion as our Guest-of-Honour. As a member of the Keppel Board more than 30 years ago, Your Excellency endorsed the acquisition of Keppel FELS, which was then a fledgling company. The vision then was to develop Singapore as a base for the offshore industry comparable to Houston, which is often regarded as the centre for the oil exploration industry. Keppel s aim at that time was to provide experienced personnel, facilities and services to offshore drilling contractors and oil companies services of a quality and at a standard of efficiency that the industry was accustomed to in the US. I am happy to report that whilst Keppel FELS has long surpassed the goal of servicing the offshore industry, its objective of providing the best-in-class service has not changed. We are now a leading offshore and marine services group with operational presence in the key offshore oil and gas centres - from the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Brazil to the North Sea, and from Singapore to the Middle East and the Caspian Sea in 1
Central Asia, providing customized services at a level of proficiency that has won us many performance bonuses and awards. In commemorating its 35 th anniversary, Keppel FELS has published a book on its history, CAN DO! The Spirit of Keppel FELS. We are grateful to Your Excellency for having readily agreed to do us the honour of launching the book on this special day. While the book, CAN DO! describes the past development of Keppel FELS, the purpose of this publication is forward looking. It aims to inspire a new generation of Keppelites to emulate the never-say-die spirit of its founding fathers. It also seeks to stir up pride and commitment amongst Keppelites to transform our vision of establishing Singapore as a Centre of Excellence in Ocean, Offshore and Marine into a reality. Keppel FELS is now at the threshold of our next stage of growth. We have just completed a successful integration with Keppel Shipyard to form Keppel Offshore & Marine. Our mission is more than just to be profitable. We aim to be a global leader in our business, achieving sustainable growth and creating value for all stakeholders. I believe this objective is achievable given the milieu in which we operate. At the recent World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg, it was acknowledged that energy is the commodity most critical to any country seeking to achieve sustainable economic growth. Indeed, the International Energy Agency has projected that world energy consumption would increase by 60% from 1999 to 2020. Much of this growth is expected to come from the developing countries such as India, China and Vietnam. A part of this energy demand will be met by coal. But with the growing concern over pollution and global warming as a result of carbon dioxide and sulfur emissions, natural gas which is a cleaner source of energy is gaining greater importance. 2
Consequently more investments are expected to be made to locate new offshore oil and gas fields as well as improve exploration and production technology. Hence more research and development will be needed to increase the efficiency in production and transportation. For us to continue growing Keppel FELS will have to be involved in and be part of this challenging scene. As a start, we shall push harder for higher productivity and provide more value-added services, cheaper and faster, to beat off competition from Korea, China, USA and Europe. At the same time we shall invest more in research and technology, and develop proprietary designs, new products and innovative processes for our customers. Our R&D arm, Offshore Technology & Development Ltd (OTD), was established more than 10 years ago. It has achieved a measure of success in developing rig products and designs that have been accepted by the offshore industry. However for R&D to really flourish here, there is a need to create a conducive environment that can stimulate innovation and creativity. This is being addressed at the national level. Furthermore we need to encourage more bright young men and women to join our industry. In the past two decades, many of our best engineering students were attracted to the more glamorous sectors such as telecommunications and computer software engineering. Too little attention has been given by our students to the tremendous opportunities that exist in the offshore and marine industry. This sector holds out a great promise to those who seek a rewarding, meaningful and satisfying career. Singapore is in an unique position. Our strategic location has helped us to become one of the most important maritime and logistics centres in Asia. At our doorstep are offshore oil and gas producers, including Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, East Timor, China, Australia and Vietnam. As a result, Singapore has become the single most important jack-up rig construction and FPSO conversion centre. Through Keppel FELS, we have built 60% of the 3
world s jack-ups on order since 1996. As a specialist shiprepair centre, Singapore shipyards have successfully cornered two thirds of the FPSO conversion market with Keppel Shipyard being a dominant participant. The growing market for natural gas has also increased the demand for LNG carriers. In Asia, Keppel Shipyard has built up a niche expertise in the repair and servicing of LNG carriers second only to Japan. Against such a backdrop it is clear to me that there is this potential to consolidate and develop further Singapore s expertise and lead in this industry. For this reason, Keppel Corporation and the National University of Singapore have decided to join forces and pool our resources to establish Singapore as a Centre of Excellence for the ocean, offshore and marine industry, a Centre comparable to those in Houston and Aberdeen. Today, I am especially pleased to announce that our subsidiary Keppel Offshore & Marine and the NUS are launching the Keppel Professorship in Offshore and Marine Engineering with a seed money of S$1.5 million. The professor for the Keppel Chair is a senior appointment. We expect to announce this appointment soon. I understand that the Keppel Professorship programme will be a part of the NUS Centre of Offshore & Maritime Engineering. Meanwhile, a steering committee chaired by the Dean of NUS Engineering Department Prof Ng Wun Jern has been set up to oversee this development. I shall leave it to NUS President Professor Shih to share with us the other exciting initiatives that NUS has embarked on. Finally I wish to thank His Excellency President Nathan for sharing this joyous event with us. Mr President, your presence here has made today even more special and memorable for all of us in Keppel. 4
I would also like to thank Professor Shih and his NUS colleagues for joining our Keppel Offshore & Marine team in this labour of conviction. I am also deeply indebted to our Keppel Director, Dr Bernard Tan who is also a NUS professor for being such a marvellous and successful match-maker! Thank you. 5