Asian Development Bank News

Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at collaborating on a fleet-specific decarbonisation strategy for ‘The Silk Alliance’ cross-industry initiative to enable zero-emission shipping across the Indian and Pacific Oceans.The collaboration includes driving investments into scalable fuel supply infrastructure to meet the demand of members of The Silk Alliance and potential wider regional bunkering demands for alternative fuels.Launched in May 2022…

The Solomon Islands has awarded a multi-million-dollar contract to a Chinese state company to upgrade an international port in Honiara in a project funded by the Asian Development Bank, an official of the island nation said on Wednesday.The United States and its allies, including Australia, New Zealand and Japan, have held concerns that China has ambitions to build a naval base in the region since the Solomon Islands struck a security pact with Beijing last year."This will be upgrading the old international port in Honiara and two domestic wharves in the provinces…

Georgia has ended an investment agreement with an international consortium for one of the biggest projects in the former Soviet country, the construction of a major deep sea port on the Black Sea coast, its infrastructure minister said on Thursday.The nine-phase project to improve access to Central Asia and the Middle East had received support from Georgia's strategic partner, the United States, as well as the European Union, which had labelled the planned port at Anaklia a priority project."The government discussed this issue and decided that further postponement does not make sense…

The Philippines stands to benefit from introducing liquefied natural gas (LNG) to support power generation and making it part of its energy mix, the government's Philippine News Agency reported quoting  an energy sector expert for the Asian Development Bank (ADB). “Right now and the foreseeable future, natural gas and LNG is much cheaper today compared to two to three years ago, so there is a chance for the Philippines and for the countries in Asia to benefit from LNG and this is window of opportunity I think,” ADB chief of energy sector group Dr. Yongping Zhai said in an interview on Thursday. Zhai believes that LNG, a cleaner gas compared to coal, could be “very much part” of the Philippines' energy mix depending on its viability.

The Government of Sri Lanka approved loans to develop both the Kankesanthurai (KKS) Harbour and the northern section of the Colombo Port. For the reconstruction of the KKS harbour, a credit line agreement between the Export-Import Bank of India and the Sri Lankan Government was signed. Accordingly, a $ 45.17 million credit line from India will be used to finance the restoration of the KKS Harbour, which is to be transformed into a self-sustainable, commercial harbour. This project is line with the Government’s North-East Economic Corridor concept to develop trade in the northern and eastern ports/harbours. The restoration of the KKS…

Bangladesh should raise spending on infrastructure to $12 billion annually, particularly in energy, transport and ports, development partners have told it, Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith said on Monday. Bangladesh currently spends just 3 percent of GDP in this sector. About 40 representatives of organisations including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the European Union attended a two-day meeting on development issues in Bangladesh. Muhith told reporters: "Our aim is to raise economic growth to 8.0 percent by 2020 from 6.5 percent now, to become a middle-income country." He said several new projects would be reflected in the budget for the next fiscal year beginning in June 2016.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $30 million project loan to Engro Elengy Terminal Private Limited, a special purpose company which will build Pakistan’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal at the Port Qasim. Besides the ADB, the International Finance Corporation is likely to provide $20 million and local banks another $50 million. The rest of the project financing will come from equity proceeds of $33.3 million, for a total cost of $133.3 million, including contingencies. The $30 million loan is to be used to build and operate the regasification facility. The fuel, suitable for use at most of the country’s combi¬ned cycle power plants, will be supplied to the state-owned Sui Southern Gas Comp¬any’s distribution network via a new high pressure pipeline.

A convergence of forces makes for market opportunities for new safe ferry systems in the developing world. Need, policy, and funding are poised to provide a moment of opportunity. The expanding global economy has resulted in economic and population growth in developing world cities, resulting in horrendous road congestion. In response, governments and businesses have begun planning for intra-urban ferries wherever possible. Ferries in the developing world have a deserved reputation for being unsafe.

Released yesterday, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Trade Register Report 2014 provides empirical evidence that, in all forms, trade and export finance is a low risk bank financing technique – further supporting ICC’s advocacy of trade finance as a strong contribution to economic recovery and growth. This evidence has the potential to alter attitudes towards trade finance, and therefore contribute to the growth of both global trade and the global economy. Based on data contributed by the major global commercial banks and reflecting more than 4.5 million transactions totalling an exposure in excess of US$2.4 trillion, the ICC Trade Register Report 2014 (“the Trade Register”) empirically demonstrates that trade finance is lower risk than many other types of financing and assets.

The strength and robustness of shipping both in Singapore and the South East Asian region was put into sharp focus at the Singapore Shipping Association’s 28th Anniversary Gala Dinner, held in the splendour of the West & Central Compass Ballroom at the Resorts World Convention Center in Sentosa. Addressing 1,800 attendees, Josephine Teo, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Transport, said that while the past year had been a challenging one for the shipping industry, the long-term fundamentals for the maritime sector in the region remained strong.

The newly expanded Colombo Port formally opened for business yesterday, a move that will allow Sri Lanka to enter as a leading South Asia trans-shipment hub. Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa opened the port, which was also attended by Xiaoyu Zhao, Vice-President at the Asian Development Bank (ADB). With a new breakwater, deeper basin, and the first of three modern new terminals now open, Colombo Port can accept the latest generation of 18,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEU) container ships and has facilities to send goods faster and more cost efficiently to other ports in the region.

The Asian Development Bank recently commissioned GMDSS specialists Dunstan and Associates and their local partner company Cruz Communications to supply and install a new GMDSS marine radio station for the Solomon Islands Maritime Safety Authority. The station is located at the Rescue Coordination Centre in Honiara and provides communication for vessels operating in the Solomon Islands region. The station uses Barrett Communication 2050 MF/HF radio communications systems and the TransOceana Digital Selective Calling (DSC) system. As part of the installation, five operators attended a training course on the principles of GMDSS and operation of the new system. The Barrett 2050 is designed for ease of use to enable operators to easily transition to the new radio system with minimal training.

According to a September 6 report from The Wall Street Journal, the Asian Development Bank plans to offload its stake in Petronet LNG Ltd., valued at $95.6m, India's Oil Secretary said. Asian Development Bank holds a 5.2% stake in Petronet, India's largest liquefied natural gas importer by volume. (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

According to reports, Asian Development Bank has signed an agreement to offer $169 million in local currency debt to India's Petronet LNG Ltd. to help fund its expansion. Earlier this week, International Finance Corp. and other banks offered $300m loans to help Petronet build a liquefied natural gas import-and-regassification terminal in southern India. Petronet LNG has a similar facility in Dahej in the western state of Gujarat. (Source: Reuters)