SEA FORREST
GREEN SOLUTIONS FOR THE BLUE ECONOMY
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SEA FORREST
I PROFILE
GREEN SOLUTIONS FOR THE BLUE ECONOMY
Singapore-based Sea Forrest has a clear focus – to help decarbonise the maritime industry. CEO & Founder George LEE, COO Captain Kevin WONG and CTO Dr TAN Wei Kiong explained more to Romana MOARES.
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ea Forrest stands as a pioneer
S
in aligning technical advancements with
in Singapore’s maritime industry
business objectives.
in energy management solutions through
enables us to offer customers a compre-
marine electric and hybrid propulsion,
hensive, integrated solution, delivering
marine charging, and energy storage
the ‘brain’ that makes all the systems
systems. Sea Forrest not only designs and
work together.”
decarbonisation efforts, specialising
According to Dr Tan: “This capability
assembles these systems but also provides comprehensive energy management
A decade of growth
solutions, encompassing software and
The company was incorporated in 2011,
in-house programming.
focusing on project management of oil rig
“Our core business involves assisting
construction, afloat repair, maintenance and
vessel owners achieve substantial changes
fabrication services. By 2019, its offerings
to align with the IMO 2030/2050 goals
expanded in line with the market develop-
for reducing GHG emissions,” stated COO
ments to include innovative solutions to
Captain Kevin Wong. “We accomplish this
address vessels’ carbon footprint.
by developing solutions tailored to different
“Throughout our evolution, we have
operation profiles and vessel types. Our
shifted to become a system integrator,”
offerings include retrofit kits for both new
said Captain Wong. Today, Sea Forrest
builds and existing vessels, as well as com-
proudly stands as a comprehensive solu-
prehensive energy management systems.”
tions provider, offering a 360° service.
“We develop cost-effective and practical
In 2021 the business was acquired by
solutions that deliver incremental steps
BH Global and rebranded Sea Forrest
in-line with the evolving technologies and
Technologies with Sea Forrest Power
alternative fuel market,” explained CEO &
Solutions and Sea Forrest Engineering
Founder George Lee. With a background as
as wholly owned subsidiaries. Sea Forrest
a mechatronics engineer, Mr Lee boasts two
Engineering is focused on equipment and
decades of experience within the marine
structure fabrication and afloat repairs.
and offshore industry, managing ships, oil
Meanwhile, Sea Forrest Power Solutions
rigs and offshore platforms construction.
fully-supports energy transition in the
One of Sea Forrest’s key differentiators
maritime industry, offering several product
is its in-house system control and software
lines – full electric propulsion; full electric-
development team, led by the accomplished
ready propulsion; green hybrid propulsion;
CTO Dr Tan Wei Kiong, who holds a PhD in
Green Cabin energy-saving system;
Optoelectronics. Dr Tan is highly skilled
SEAGEN marinised lithium-ion batteries;
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SEA FORREST
I PROFILE
tions that encourage owners to make incremental changes that align with the evolving technology and supply chain developments.” Sea Forrest capitalises on its extensive industry expertise, with approximately 60% of its workforce comprising engineers and programmers, a prominent competitive advantage for the company. Captain and Energy Cube containerised energy
Wong, an accomplished marine profes-
storage system.
sional holding qualifications as a Master
The company’s vision is to deliver green solutions for the blue economy. “Our business is about encouraging
Mariner and an MSc in Maritime Studies, previously held the esteemed position of Singapore’s Port Master from 2017 to 2022.
action now,” Mr Lee explained. “Given the
Speaking about his team, he emphasised:
current challenges such as the insufficient
“We don’t simply recruit engineers; rather,
charging infrastructure for electric vessels
we actively seek out young talents who are
and the need to establish a reliable
enthusiastic about contributing to sustain-
supply chain for alternative net zero
ability projects.”
fuels, many vessel owners are simply waiting. Consequently, we created solu-
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As an innovative company, Sea Forrest actively seeks partners who align with its
vision, as explained by Mr Lee: “Our effec-
Forrest is proud to have delivered, along
tiveness is intricately linked to our suppliers
with its partners, the hybrid solution for
and partners. We hold these collaborative
Singapore’s first hybrid powered pilot
relationships in high regard.”
vessel and four hybrid powered windfarm CTVs for operations in Europe.
Transitioning to net zero
As the energy transition in the
Sea Forrest offers a range of solutions
maritime industry progresses, the com-
for current and future applications. “Our
pany is increasing its market share. For a
developments are agnostic to the future
Japanese client, Sea Forrest has delivered
choice of energy,” said Dr Tan. “This allows
a full electric propulsion system (zero-
customers to start decarbonisation without
emission) and has received additional
worrying about their capital investment being obsolete in a few years’ time.” The highest demand is for the company’s Green Hybrid propulsion systems that are retrofittable to both existing vessels and new builds. These systems offer seamless control between electric and diesel modes and accept alternative fuels. They are suitable for pilot boats, windfarm CTVs, fast crew boats and patrol crafts. Sea
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SEA FORREST
I PROFILE
orders from other Japanese customers.
type-approved in Singapore. Our portfolio is
Through a strategic partnership, Taiyo
further enhanced by containerised energy
(Japan) will be Sea Forrest’s distributor
storage systems catering to both marine
for their proprietary Energy Cube energy
and offshore applications.”
storage system in Japan. Sea Forrest’s full electric-ready systems
Sustainable progress
are generating considerable interest.
While the sector is new, the competing
“The system is designed to future-proof
technologies are still in their early stages.
vessels for owners looking to transition
By focusing on cost-efficient solutions that
to change to full electric or fuel cells,”
are available now and suitable for both
said Mr Lee. The first full electric-ready
new and existing vessels, Sea Forrest is at
system was delivered to Victory Private Limited, a tanker company operating in Singapore. “We have also achieved notable success with our Green Cabin energy-saving systems on three 42m – fast crew boats for the Brunei, Malaysia and Thailand oil and gas sectors, and delivered solar-powered propulsion systems for a reservoir maintenance boat in Marina Bay,” he elaborated. “Additionally, we proudly introduced the first marinised lithium-ion battery for marine propulsion, designed, built, assembled and
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Sea Forrest Capt Kevin Wong COO
Sea Fo
the forefront of accelerating the maritime sector’s green transformation. These efforts have not gone unnoticed – the Singapore Minister for Trade and Industry took a keen interest in Sea Forrest and visited its Creation Lab in July 2023. “During the visit, the Minister announced a foundational sustainability guide titled ‘Sustainability Playbook for Enterprises’,” said Captain Wong. “Since then, we have been featured in the local media as an example of a company that has embraced sustainability. “Through significant investments, we aim to expand our business, increase
marine batteries and propulsion technology.
our talent pool and scale up our solutions.
Additionally, with improved data collection,
Our current focus is primarily on R&D and
we can explore the use of AI to further opti-
refining existing solutions. We collaborate
mise solutions for customers.”
with major ship classification societies and
Concluding, Mr Lee noted that while Sea
research institutions,working on projects
Forrest’s current presence is primarily in
to drive innovation and safety in maritime
Singapore, its client base spans the globe:
electrification technology.
“To prepare for the future, we are in the
“This partnership with ABS extends to
process of planning overseas offices to
updating classification rules and standards
better serve our international clientele and
to ensure their relevance and easy appli-
are also actively recruiting passionate
cation in the rapidly evolving landscape of
talents to strengthen our team.”
orrest Dr Tan Wei Kiong CTO
Sea Forrest Edmund Chan CFO
n
Sea Forrest George Lee CEO
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