简体 繁體 日本語 한국어 English Deutsch Français Italiano Español Português Русский Українська

The Commodity Trading Hub (1892–2026)

Read the PDF edition (3 pages)

  • 1892: Bulk storage tanks for kerosene are built on Pulau Bukom. Until 1960 Singapore serves as a storage, transshipment and distribution centre for oil in the Far East.1
  • 26 July 1961: Goh Keng Swee opens Shell’s refinery on Pulau Bukom, described at the time as Singapore’s first oil refinery.2
  • 1966: Vitol is founded in Rotterdam. Mobil opens its first Singapore refinery at Pioneer Road in Jurong in the same year.3
  • 1979: Vitol opens its Singapore office. The Singapore Petroleum Company, BP and Caltex form the Singapore Refining Company.4
  • 1989: The Approved Oil Trader programme is introduced and covers 25 international trading companies. SIMEX launches a fuel oil futures contract.5
  • 1990: The Approved International Trader programme extends the incentive to other commodities. Vitol Asia Pte Ltd is established in April.6
  • 1 April 1991: Kuok Khoon Hong and Martua Sitorus found Wilmar in Singapore as a palm oil trading company.7
  • 1993: Trafigura is founded by six partners. The group later makes Singapore its headquarters.8
  • 4 July 1995: Olam is incorporated in Singapore. The reclamation of Jurong Island begins in the same year.9
  • 1997: Noble Group lists in Singapore. Smoke from fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan covers the city, as it does again in 2013 and 2015.10
  • 14 October 2000: Jurong Island is officially opened. Its reclamation is completed on 25 September 2009.11
  • June 2001: The two trader programmes are merged into the Global Trader Programme.12
  • 2004: China Aviation Oil collapses after derivatives losses. Its chief executive is sentenced in March 2006.13
  • 11 February 2005: Olam lists on the main board of the Singapore Exchange.14
  • 2007: More than 200 companies hold Global Trader status. A special 5 per cent rate for LNG trading income is announced in May, and construction of the Jurong Rock Caverns begins on 8 February.15
  • 22 October 2009: PetroChina completes its takeover of the Singapore Petroleum Company.16
  • 2010: The largest iron ore miners move to index-based quarterly pricing. The Singapore Mercantile Exchange opens in August.17
  • 7 May 2013: The Singapore LNG terminal receives its first commercial cargo.18
  • 7 November 2014: The Danish bunker group OW Bunker collapses and leaves physical suppliers unpaid.19
  • 2015: SGX launches an LNG index for cargoes loaded in Singapore. Noble Group reports a net loss of 1.7 billion US dollars and is delisted in 2018.20
  • 2017: Singapore becomes the first port to make mass flow meters mandatory for bunker deliveries. LNG bunkering rules (TR 56) follow on 28 April.21
  • 1 January 2019: The carbon tax under the Carbon Pricing Act 2018 starts at S$5 per tonne. It rises to S$25 in 2024 and to S$45 in 2026.22
  • 1 January 2020: The global sulphur limit of the International Maritime Organization reduces the sulphur content of marine fuel to 0.5 per cent.23
  • 2021: Climate Impact X is founded by DBS, SGX, Standard Chartered and Temasek. The special LNG rate lapses after 31 March.24
  • 2022: Contaminated bunker fuel affects about 200 ships, and the MPA suspends Glencore’s bunker licence for two months from 18 August. Singapore’s LNG trade reaches about 240 billion US dollars.25
  • October 2023: The government approves a second LNG terminal of up to 5 million tonnes a year.26
  • 17 February 2024: A third Global Trader tax tier of 15 per cent is added in response to the global minimum tax.27
  • 1 January 2025: Vitol completes the acquisition of the restructured Noble group.28
  • 31 March 2025: Shell completes its acquisition of Pavilion Energy from Temasek. Shell’s sale of its Bukom refinery to a joint venture of Chandra Asri and Glencore closes in April.29
  • 2025: Bunker sales reach a record 56.77 million tonnes, and vessel arrivals reach 3.22 billion gross tons.30
  • 13 February 2026: Budget 2026 extends the Global Trader Programme to 31 December 2031 and adds environmental attribute certificates to the qualifying commodities.31
  • 28 February 2026: After strikes on Iran, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is largely blocked. Dubai crude reaches a record 166 US dollars per barrel on 19 March.32

Notes

  1. Tilak Doshi, “The Singapore Refiners”, in Houston of Asia, 1989; see Chapter G.II. ↩
  2. National Heritage Board, Roots.sg, “Shell in Singapore”; see Chapter G.II. ↩
  3. Vitol, “About”; ExxonMobil, “Our operations”; see Chapters G.II and G.V. ↩
  4. Vitol, “About”; “Technology: Two of Singapore’s refiners expand despite lack of land”; see Chapter G.II. ↩
  5. Lim Hng Kiang, speech at the Global Trader Networking Dinner 2009; see Chapters G.I and G.II. ↩
  6. Lim Hng Kiang, speech of 2009; Wikipedia, “Vitol”; see Chapters G.I and G.V. ↩
  7. Wikipedia, “Wilmar International” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.V. ↩
  8. Wikipedia, “Trafigura” (accessed November 2026); see Chapters G.I and G.V. ↩
  9. Wikipedia, “Olam International” and “Jurong Island” (accessed November 2026); see Chapters G.I and G.V. ↩
  10. Wikipedia, “Noble Group” and “Transboundary Haze Pollution Act 2014”; see Chapters G.IV and G.V. ↩
  11. Wikipedia, “Jurong Island” (accessed November 2026); see Chapters G.I and G.II. ↩
  12. Rikvin, “Singapore’s Global Trader Programme”; see Chapter G.I. ↩
  13. Wikipedia, “China Aviation Oil” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.V. ↩
  14. Wikipedia, “Olam International” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.V. ↩
  15. Lim Hng Kiang, speech at the Global Trader Summit 2007, 24 May 2007; JTC Corporation, “Jurong Rock Caverns”; see Chapters G.I and G.II. ↩
  16. Wikipedia, “Singapore Petroleum Company” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.V. ↩
  17. Wikipedia, “Iron ore” and “Singapore Mercantile Exchange” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.IV. ↩
  18. Ministry of Trade and Industry, Energy Market Authority and SLNG; see Chapter G.IV. ↩
  19. Wikipedia, “OW Bunker” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.III. ↩
  20. SGX LNG Index Group (SLInG); Wikipedia, “Noble Group”; see Chapters G.IV and G.V. ↩
  21. gCaptain (Reuters), “Singapore extends compulsory use of flow meters”; MPA, “LNG Bunkering”; see Chapter G.III. ↩
  22. National Climate Change Secretariat, “Carbon Tax”; see Chapters G.II and G.IV. ↩
  23. Wikipedia, “IMO 2020” (accessed November 2026); see Chapters G.II and G.III. ↩
  24. See Chapters G.I and G.IV. ↩
  25. MPA, media release of 3 August 2022; Lee Pak Sing, The Business Times, 4 September 2023; see Chapters G.I, G.III and G.IV. ↩
  26. LNG Prime, “Singapore LNG wins approval for second terminal”; see Chapter G.IV. ↩
  27. Income Tax Act 1947, s. 43I(1AA); see Chapter G.I. ↩
  28. Wikipedia, “Noble Group” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.V. ↩
  29. MarineLink, “Shell Completes Acquisition of Pavilion Energy”; “Shell completes Singapore refinery sale”; see Chapters G.II, G.IV and G.V. ↩
  30. Baird Maritime (Reuters), 13 January 2026; see Chapter G.III. ↩
  31. Ministry of Finance, Budget 2026, Annex H-1; see Chapter G.I. ↩
  32. Wikipedia, “2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis” (accessed November 2026); see Chapter G.II. ↩

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of October 2026.

Setting up or expanding in Singapore?

SingaporeIQ is edited by Dr Alexander Ressos, an international business lawyer with more than 15 years of local experience in Singapore as a permanent resident, a Singapore registered foreign lawyer and managing partner of a Singapore foreign law practice. In addition to significant experience in cross-border investments and transactions, UHNWI private client work and sanctions/export controls, Dr Ressos has extensive experience in cross-border business and in crypto and digital-asset projects in Singapore, drawn from more than 700 projects since 2017.

If you are planning a company incorporation, an investment, a holding structure or a market entry through Singapore, you can reach Dr Ressos directly at [email protected]. Singapore law advice is provided by KGP Legal LLC, a licensed firm of Singapore advocates and solicitors. Dr Ressos and his team facilitate the full range of Singapore legal, compliance and company administration services, including company incorporation, corporate transactions, commercial contracts, crypto and digital assets, financial regulatory work and dispute resolution, including litigation in the Singapore courts. For legal, tax and fiduciary services in Switzerland, see helveticaregister.com.

Your project Write to Dr Alexander Ressos