Singaporean shipyards managed to bag just S$820m ($592m) in new orders last year, down dramatically from the S$4.9bn secured in 2015, according to statistics released by the Association of Singapore Marine Industries (ASMI).
ASMI’s president, Chua San Lye, commented: “The reduced exploration and production (E&P) and drilling activities have resulted in a dearth of new orders for drilling rigs given the weak utilisation of existing operating rig fleets, coupled with the supply overhang of newbuilds still under construction.
Major shipyards in the republic have received requests for deferred delivery of projects or experienced customers undergoing major restructuring.
By the end of 2016, the industry’s total orderbook stood at around S$8bn, a 57.9% drop from the same time in 2015.
Last year saw the local offshore and marine industry shave 10% of its workforce, ASMI revealed.
“The tightening of work permit quota, fewer recruitment, retrenchment and natural workforce attrition contributed to the drop in the industry’s workforce in 2016. The number of workers employed in the industry has been decreasing since 2013,” Chua noted.
The ASMI boss concluded, saying: “The challenging environment in the offshore business is expected to remain for some time.”
