MPA outlines long-term direction for Singapore’s maritime ecosystem: Allen & Gledhill

27 March 2026

On 5 March 2026, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (“MPA”) issued a press release outlining its long-term direction for Maritime Singapore, Singapore’s maritime ecosystem which comprises Singapore’s global hub port and shipping and maritime services. MPA’s direction includes developing strategies to seize growth opportunities and strengthen Singapore’s position as a key node in global trade, while continuing to drive innovation, accelerate technology adoption, and develop a future-ready workforce. Highlights of these initiatives are set out below.

Maritime Singapore Master Plan: MPA is developing the Maritime Singapore Master Plan, an industry-wide blueprint to guide the sector’s longer-term development. Targeted for release in 2027, the Master Plan will outline strategies and plans to (i) strengthen Singapore’s competitiveness as a global hub port; (ii) enhance Singapore’s attractiveness as an International Maritime Centre; (iii) grow Singapore as a centre for maritime technology and innovation, including in AI and research and development (“R&D”); and
(iv) develop a skilled maritime workforce. MPA will be engaging businesses, industry stakeholders, and the public for feedback and ideas. A local industry panel comprising key business leaders will be convened to provide their expertise on opportunities and challenges for the industry.
Investing in maritime talent: MPA will introduce a new initiative, the Maritime Cluster Fund - Global Rotation (MCF-GR) scheme, which will co-fund the overseas deployment of local middle managers when they take on regional or global supervisory roles. These assignments provide local maritime professionals greater exposure to international operations while building leadership capabilities in multi-cultural environments. To further support structured career development in the maritime sector, MPA will streamline the requirements of the Maritime Cluster Fund - Management Associate (MCF-MA) scheme to make it easier for firms to come onboard and co-fund career development programmes. The scheme will allow young professionals to undergo structured rotations across different commercial and operational roles to build a broader understanding of the maritime value chain.
Anchoring maritime innovation and venture-building in Singapore:
A new innovation track under the Maritime Cluster Fund - Business Development (MCF-BD) scheme will be introduced to attract maritime companies to anchor their innovation and technology leaders, product teams, and corporate venture capital (“CVC”) functions in Singapore. The scheme will co-fund qualifying costs such as rentals and salaries of key personnel for companies setting up innovation and technology desks or CVCs in Singapore. Companies will also gain access to R&D expertise and resources, regulatory sandboxes, and co-funding support to pursue innovation activities. This will encourage companies to not only set up offices in Singapore but also entrench their innovation capabilities in Singapore’s maritime ecosystem.
Expanding operational trials of unmanned vessels: From the second half of 2026, MPA will be expanding trials of unmanned surface vessels (“USV”) for use in Singapore’s port waters. These trials are designed to enhance safety, efficiency, and resilience. Findings from the trials will support the safe
and scalable integration of USVs in port operations. MPA will work with industry partners to develop safety standards, technical specifications, and operating procedures for USV deployment.
Maritime Digital Twin: MPA is releasing new tools for the industry to tap on the Maritime Digital Twin (“MDT”) to test products and services before implementation and enhance coordination capabilities across agencies using the MDT. Beginning with two pilot use cases, these efforts will enable better delivery of marine services to port users. MPA will also develop a common developer toolkit and make available MDT-compatible digital tools, software libraries, and application programming interfaces (APIs). This will enable companies and researchers to plug into MPA’s data stream and test new operational concepts and simulation models before building full-scale applications.
Strengthening operational efficiency in port operations: Singapore’s Just-In-Time (JIT) Planning and Coordination Platform optimises the use of port resources, facilitating faster ship turnaround time in the Port of Singapore, and delivers immediate operational benefits. Since its launch in 2024, over 150 port users and service providers across the container, general cargo, and bulk sectors have come onboard the platform, improving vessel turnaround time in the port. Trials for tankers are set to commence in the coming months. MPA has also worked on the complete roll-out of Maritime 5G coverage in Singapore’s major fairways, anchorages, terminals, and boarding grounds in 2025. The network provides high-bandwidth, low-latency connectivity to support real-time applications such as digital bunkering, autonomous vessel and drone trials, and remote inspections. MPA will be working to optimise the network coverage and develop new use cases.