Singapore's Port Sets Records for Containers Handled, Vessel Arrivals in 2024

It also achieves new highs in categories like the sale of bunker fuels and biofuel blends

- Esther Loi

Singapore's port registered a new record of 3.11 billion gross tons in arriving ship traffic in 2024, up from the previous high of 3.09 billion gross tons in 2023.

Annual vessel arrival tonnage—or the internal volume of all ships that arrive in a year, including their engine room and non-cargo spaces—is a common maritime industry measure of vessel traffic calling at a port.

In 2024, the port of Singapore also handled 41.12 million shipping containers, or twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs)—an all-time high—said the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) on Jan 15. The 2024 record eclipsed the earlier record of 39.01 million TEUs in 2023.

MPA released these numbers at the Singapore Maritime Foundation (SMF) New Year Conversations, a yearly maritime industry event.

The world's second-busiest container port after Shanghai, Singapore's port also achieved new records in other categories, including the sale of bunker fuels and biofuel blends, as well as the total tonnage of Singapore-registered ships.

Meanwhile, MPA said reclamation works for the second phase of the Tuas mega port are about 75 per cent completed, with 11 of its berths now operational. Seven more berths will be up and running by 2027.

Tuas Port is being developed in four phases and will be the world's largest fully automated port when completed in the 2040s.

By 2027, operations at Tanjong Pagar, Keppel and Brani terminals will be moved to the $20 billion mega port. Pasir Panjang Terminal will remain open until its operations are also consolidated in Tuas by the 2040s.