Mr Tan Hee Teck, Chief Executive Officer, Resorts World Sentosa

His Excellency Cao Zhong Ming, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Singapore

Ladies and Gentlemen,

 

Introduction

1. I fondly remember when RWS first opened its doors in 2010, making its mark as Singapore’s first integrated resort.

a. Since then, our integrated resorts have continuously enhanced their tourism offerings by broadening our suite of attractions, F&B, MICE and entertainment offerings. This has strengthened Singapore’s position as a leading MICE and leisure destination.

2. IRs continue to innovate and refresh their offerings to stay ahead, especially with the intensifying global competition.

a. I visit our IRs regularly - both MBS and RWS, as Hee Teck attests. In fact, I was here just yesterday. But besides work related visits, I also bring my children to RWS, Universal Studios and the SEA Aquarium often.

b. Hee Teck and I also jointly broke ground on Illumination’s Minion Land two years ago. The momentum of RWS’ expansion continues to build, and I am glad to be here to witness the next milestone for the groundbreaking of the Waterfront Lifestyle Development today.

 

Encouraging Sustainable Tourism

3. The Waterfront Lifestyle Development will feature new leisure, entertainment and hospitality offerings.

a. And we know that growth often leaves an environmental footprint, which reinforces the need for sustainability practices to reduce this footprint as much as possible. As we celebrate this milestone, we must remember that growth and sustainability can and should go hand in hand.

4. Yesterday, I attended the second edition of the Global Sustainable Tourism Conference here at RWS and spoke about how we can better encourage sustainable tourism.

a. RWS has been at the forefront of this. It was the first to achieve sustainability certification for all its hotels back in 2021, and the first in the world to achieve both the GSTC Destination and Industry Criteria for hotels.

b. It is important our key tourism players like RWS continue to set an example for the industry by adopting sustainability practices throughout their expansion plans.

5. In this respect, I applaud RWS’ target for the Waterfront Lifestyle Development to attain BCA Green Mark Platinum certification by adopting sustainability practices. I understand that RWS will:

a. Use low carbon concrete during the construction of the Waterfront Lifestyle Development - this is expected to reduce embodied carbon by around 29,500 tco2e, equivalent to the electricity needed to power >15,000 four-room public housing flats for a year.

b. The development will also have electric vehicle charging stations, and is designed to optimise daylight to encourage reduced usage of electric lighting.

6. Accommodations at Waterfront Lifestyle Development will also install smart features to maximise energy efficiency. This is one of the many efforts that will help achieve our target for net-zero emissions by 2050 in our Hotel Sustainability Roadmap.

7. Like RWS, I encourage all our tourism industry players to also adopt innovative sustainability solutions and play a part in reducing our tourism carbon footprint.

 

Restoring Nature into our Urban Landscape

8. Beyond adopting sustainability solutions, Singapore is transforming into a City in Nature in other ways. A key strategy of our Singapore Green Plan 2030 is to restore nature into our urban landscape.

9. The Waterfront Lifestyle Development will have biophilic, nature-infused architecture which aligns with this key strategy. Its unique design will create the resemblance of a third ‘mountain’ between Mount Imbiah and Mount Serapong, and mimic the contours of the surrounding landscape to enhance Sentosa’s greenery.

10. There will also be a mountain trail, where visitors will be rewarded with views of Sentosa, the Greater Southern Waterfront, and Singapore’s Central Business District at its peak.

 

Economic Benefits of IRs’ Expansions

11. All these are part of RWS’ expansion plans that are worth around S$6.8B, which has great potential to create economic benefits, new jobs and opportunities for local businesses.

12. We will see some of RWS’ expansion efforts come to fruition in the coming months with new and refreshed offerings. In 2025, we will get to “go bananas” at Illumination’s Minion Land in Universal Studios Singapore and learn more about Singapore’s coastal ecosystems at our Singapore Oceanarium, which I remind everyone I meet excitedly, will be 3x the size of our current SEA Aquarium.

13. I’m excited about RWS’ expansion. It will continue to contribute to our tourism success story and growth and provide new purpose-of-visit drivers for visitors.

a. Together with our other efforts to rejuvenate our tourism offerings, these efforts will keep us ahead of the competition and contribute to Singapore’s vibrant tourism landscape!

 

Conclusion

14. Congrats again to RWS. I look forward to returning to the Waterfront Lifestyle Development in 2030 with our fellow Singaporeans and visitors. Thank you.