Mr Lim Hng Kiang at the Official Opening of Robert Bosch South East Asia Headquarters Building, 12 May 2010

SPEECH BY MR. LIM HNG KHIANG, MINISTER FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY AT THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF ROBERT BOSCH SOUTH EAST ASIA HEADQUARTERS BUILDING AT BISHAN STREET ON 12 MAY 2010 AT 11 AM

Mr. Fehrenbach, Chairman of Robert Bosch,

Ambassador Jörg Ranau, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Singapore,

Distinguished guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

A very good morning,

I am pleased to join you today for the official opening of the Robert Bosch headquarters for South East Asia.

Asia – Emerging Global Consumer Market

Asia with its rapid rate of urbanization and growing affluent population is fast becoming an important consumer market of goods and services. To capitalize on this growing market, many leading global companies are expanding their presence in Asia. I understand that Bosch, for instance, expects the region to contribute to 30% of its sales by 2015. The decision of Bosch to base its new business units in Singapore, such as its Innovations Software Technology, is a strong affirmation that we can play an important role for companies looking to tap into the burgeoning Asian market. Our deep industry base, skilled workforce and excellent connectivity to key markets have made Singapore an ideal base for companies to navigate Asia’s complexities and further drive their business expansion in the region.

Singapore as a Living Laboratory for Urban Solutions

Increasingly, companies have also found Singapore a useful base for developing new products and concepts tailored for the Asian markets. Rapid urbanization in Asia has increasingly strained finite resources. As a result, demand is fast growing for urban solutions like clean energy, green building solutions, traffic management and security. There are enormous business opportunities for companies able to provide sustainable urban solutions to cities. As an urbanized Asian city with nearly five million inhabitants and a strong research community, Singapore offers a conducive environment for companies to hatch new ideas and test concepts.

Two years ago, the Singapore Economic Development Board embarked on an “Urban Solutions” initiative. Working with partner agencies, platforms were created for companies to develop, test and showcase solutions in Singapore.

Let me elaborate on some of these platforms. In urban transport, our Land Transport Authority works closely with companies like IBM, Cisco and ST Electronics, to develop intelligent transport solutions such as traffic optimization and transport telematics. A multi-agency Electric Vehicle taskforce headed by the Energy Market Authority and the Land Transport Authority has also been created to develop and test electric vehicle technology in Singapore.

In green building technology, the Housing and Development Board will develop Punggol as an eco-town, using green technologies and capitalizing on its natural surroundings. Complementing this is Jurong Town Corporation’s 50 hectare Clean Tech Park, Singapore’s first eco-business park. The park will house clean technology research, innovation and commercialization activities. It will also serve as a test-bed for the development and application of clean technologies.

Our R&D in cutting-edge water technologies has drawn more than 70 leading water companies such as Siemens Water, GE Water and Nitto Denko to Singapore. Many of these companies have established R&D centers and tapped into Singapore’s “living laboratory”.

Bosch, I have been told, invests over 45% of its R&D budget in products that conserve resources and thus protect the environment. It also generates one-third of its sales from these eco-friendly products. Indeed, this very building that houses Bosch’s headquarters showcases the deployment of such cutting-edge, environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient technology. It will be Bosch’s home for several key Asia Pacific functions, including Corporate Research and Advanced Engineering. I am confident that there will many opportunities for Bosch and Singapore to collaborate on urban solutions.

Conclusion

In closing, on behalf of the Singapore Government, I would like to express our appreciation to Bosch, for your continued confidence and trust in Singapore. Bosch has been in Singapore since 1923 and today’s event marks yet another significant milestone in the close to 90 years of partnership with Singapore. We look forward to building upon this successful partnership with you. I extend my heartiest congratulations to the management and staff of Robert Bosch South East Asia on the official opening of your headquarters building.

Thank you.