Southeast Asia · Case study

Climate Adaptation at Tuas Mega Port, Singapore

Tuas, Singapore.Phase 1 reclamation built from 2015.

At Singapore’s Tuas Mega Port, the documented climate adaptation measure is the elevation of the Phase 1 reclamation platform (MPA, 2023).

A foundational physical adaptation is the reclaimed land platform, built five metres above mean sea level to adapt to rising sea levels (MPA, 2023; PMO, 2019). By raising the entire terminal footprint, Singapore can reduce dependency on future retrofitting and ensures that port operations remain viable even under higher mean sea levels and extreme storm surge scenarios. This elevation strategy reflects a proactive adaptation approach aligned with national coastal protection planning.

As port engineering context, the seawalls are formed by 10-storey caissons: 221 caissons form 8.6 km of seawall in Phase 1 and 227 form 9.1 km in Phase 2 (MPA, n.d.).

At the berth level, the port incorporates berths for the largest container ships, with seabeds deepened to cater for larger ships of the future (MPA, n.d.); this deepening serves commercial vessel size, not climate adaptation.

The Tuas case shows how a design platform level set above mean sea level can build sea level rise into a new port from the start.

Transferability

DMC ports planning new terminals or land reclamation can set the platform level high enough to allow for future sea level rise and storm surge from the start. Building this into the design reduces the need for future retrofitting. Existing ports can apply the same principle when they expand or rebuild terminal areas.

Sources

All information used for this case study was based on publicly available resources.