Growing with Singapore
The BPS Installation after it was commissioned in 1967.
BP showed their seriousness with determination
to turn the refinery into a long-term venture. Les
Ogden, an Australian engineer whom was one
of the first executives of BP, was dispatched to
The staff and management fostered a close
relationship from the beginning. People working in
BP regarded each other as more than colleagues.
The leadership and strong people-orientation of
raise standards at the Pasir Panjang refinery. As
operations manager of the company’s Kwinana
refinery in Perth, he made frequent trips to
Singapore to train the local staff.
BP’s early years in Singapore provided the
foundation for its corporate culture, which Ling
says, remains strong to this day and has enabled
the company to adapt and grow in good times and
bad.
It was a rare opportunity and privilege for Ling to
work in a global company under the guidance of a
seasoned manager and engineer with world-class
credentials.
In the 1960s, Kwinana was a state-of-the-art global
refinery which BP used as a platform to train young
engineers, technicians and managers from other
22