Singapore still assessing visa application of shipping CEO who claimed he was denied one over Russia sanctions

SINGAPORE: The visa application of a shipping company's chief executive officer was rejected as supporting documents were not provided by the deadline, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) clarified on Monday (Jun 24).

The Financial Times had earlier this month reported that Singapore had "refused" to renew the work visa of Red Box Energy Services CEO Philip Adkins after the company was found by the United States to be breaching sanctions on Russia.

As Red Box is headquartered in Singapore, the refusal to renew his visa is "in effect forcing him to step down", Mr Adkins told the Financial Times. 

"I accept the consequences of the sanctions, even though I don’t agree with them," he added.

The Manpower Ministry said in response to CNA queries that Red Box submitted an employment pass (EP) renewal application to the ministry for Mr Adkins in December last year.

However, the application was rejected in February this year as the "necessary supporting documents were not provided by the due date specified in the application process", said MOM.

"Red Box Energy Services submitted a second EP renewal application for Philip Adkins with the requested documents on Mar 6, 2024. This application is currently being assessed."

Red Box was placed under sanctions by the US in May for reportedly delivering materials used in the construction of a Russian liquefied natural gas project in the Arctic Circle, reported the Financial Times.

The United Kingdom earlier this month added Red Box to its sanctions list, it said.

According to the article, Mr Adkins, who is himself not under any sanctions, argued at that time that the construction material were “simple steel frames” and therefore the company did not breach sanctions.