ASCO, the Aberdeen based oil and gas logistics specialist, has entered the Asia Pacific market with the opening of an ASCO Freight Management operation in Singapore.

International freight management executive, Neil Johnson, previously with ASCO's joint venture partner in Singapore, Mangrove Holdings, has joined ASCO to lead the new business. Like ASCO's freight management operations in Aberdeen and Houston, the Singapore business will specialize in providing project freight services for the energy, infrastructure and related sectors.

Neil Johnson said, "I am delighted to be joining ASCO. The ASCO Freight management teams in Houston and Aberdeen have built a strong reputation for providing high level project freight capabilities and exceptional customer service; I share their philosophy and am really looking forward to building an equally strong business in Singapore. And together, we will be able to offer global solutions for complex project freight movements."

With operations in Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific, ASCO Freight Management now has a presence in the leading oil and gas engineering, procurement and construction centres. The business works with oil and gas operators including BP, Apache, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Conoco Philips and with EPC companies such as Mustang and Technip, and has recently handled major assignments in South America, West Africa and South Korea.

Billy Allan, ASCO chief executive said, "Our plan now is to build out from our three regional hubs. In the short term, we expect to establish operations in Stavanger, Baku, Calgary and Kuala Lumpur. Beyond this, we will continue to develop our freight management presence in key engineering, procurement and construction locations."

The new base in Singapore will serve as a platform for the development of other ASCO services in the South East Asian market.

Billy Allan added, "Clearly, the Australasian region is going to be a key focus for oil and gas investment in the coming decade so we will also be using our new presence in Singapore to explore opportunities in the region for our shore base, marine and waste management services."

Tags: ASCO