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The port of Singapore cemented its status as a leading port in Asia by bagging the awards for the 'Best Seaport in Asia' and the 'Best Green Service Provider- Seaport' at the 26th edition of the Asian Freight and Supply Chain Awards (AFSCA).

The 26th edition of the Asian Freight and Supply Chain Awards was held today at the Four Seasons Hotel Shanghai. Receiving the award on behalf of the Port of Singapore was Captain Lee Cheng Wee, Port Master from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA).

"These awards are testament to the good support that we have received from the industry and stakeholders to develop the Singapore into a choice port of call. We will continue to invest in infrastructure and introduce initiatives to ensure that the Port of Singapore remains a premier global hub port and a preferred port of call," said Mr Lam Yi Young, MPA's Chief Executive.

Singapore emerged as the top contender in the 'Best Seaport in Asia' category for an unprecedented 24th time, from a list of nominees that included Busan, Dalian, Hong Kong, Kaohsiung, Klang, Laem Chabang, Manila, Ningbo, Shenzhen, Tanjung Pelepas,Tianjin and Yangshan.

The nominees were judged on a range of criteria, including cost competitiveness, container shipping-friendly fee regime, provision of suitable container shipping-related infrastructure, timely and adequate investment in new infrastructure to meet future demand and the facilitation of ancillary services, including logistics and freight forwarding facilities.

The port of Singapore also received the 'Best Green Service Provider-Seaport' award for the second time, in recognition of its efforts to promote environmentally-friendly shipping. Other nominees in the category were Brisbane, Hamburg, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Rotterdam, Tacoma and Vancouver.

To promote clean and green shipping in Singapore, MPA launched the S$100 million Maritime Singapore Green Initiative in April 2011. A comprehensive initiative comprising three programmes-Green Ship Programme, Green Port Programme and Green Technology Programme, the Maritime Singapore Green Initiative seeks to reduce the environmental impact of shipping and related activities.

The Port of Singapore continued to perform well in 2011 with container and cargo throughput reaching record figures of 29.9 million Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units and 530.5 million tonnes respectively. Annual vessel arrival tonnage also crossed the two billion gross tons (GT) mark to reach 2.12 billion GT for the first time in 2011, while bunker sales reached a new record of 43.2 million tonnes.