Singapore Eyes Investment in Indian Civil Aviation MRO Facilities

• Singapore plans to partner with India on MRO in civil aviation, with SIA Engineering exploring a tie-up with Tata Group
• Five MoUs signed during PM Wong’s visit, adding to the 2023 semiconductor partnership
• Leaders inaugurated Phase Two of Bharat Mumbai Container Terminal to enhance trade and logistics

According to the Ministry of External Affairs Secretary (East) P. Kumaran, Singapore is talking to New Delhi about a partnership to help develop India's maintenance, repair and overhauling (MRO) capability in respect to civil aviation.

In a press briefing on the occasion of the official visit of Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to India, Kumaran said that civil aviation cooperation includes a number of areas, which included working together on connectivity, flights and destinations.

"SIA Engineering is a company in Singapore. They want to partner with the Tatas since Singapore Airlines has invested in Air India to the extent of 25 per cent. So it makes sense for them to collaborate in the area of MRO with Tata's and also to help develop capacity in India, and to use the land availability in India to set up MRO facilities. So broadly, those are the areas where we collaborate", stated Kumaran.

He noted that MRO is a big opportunity because of all of Singapore's experience, track record, and capabilities.

Kumaran also mentioned that Singapore's SIA Engineering Company Limited, a global commercial aviation MRO, and one of the world's largest airframe maintenance, repair, and overhaul services company is evaluating a partnership with Tata Group to establish MRO facilities in India to meet India increasingly aviation needs and develop domestic capability gaming.

Also Read: India, Singapore to Boost Ties in Manufacturing, Green Shipping

While Prime Minister Wong was in India, both India and Singapore entered into five major Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs), enhancing bilateral cooperation.

The MEA official stated, "Five MoUs have been concluded in important fields. These include cooperation on a green and digital shipping corridor, promoting collaboration in the space sector, cooperation in training and R&D in the field of civil aviation, cooperation in digital asset innovation, and establishment of a national centre of excellence for skilling in advanced manufacturing in Chennai".

This is an extension of earlier cooperation, including a MoU on semiconductor ecosystem partnerships signed in Singapore during Prime Minister Modi’s visit there last year.

To further indicate the importance of connectivity and trade infrastructure, the two leaders together virtualised the inauguration of Phase Two of the Bharat Mumbai Container Terminal at Jawaharlal Nehru Port, which is a significant landmark in improved and sustainable regional logistics and economic development.

The ministry stated, "This project, developed on a DBFOT basis, is operated by PSA International of Singapore. Completion of this phase has doubled PSA's terminal capacity to 4.8 million TEUs annually, establishing it as India's largest single container terminal and thus making JNP the largest container port in the country".