GE Aerospace to inject US$300 million to boost Singapore engine repair business with EDB support
The move will focus on AI, automation and digitalisation to raise productivity and turnover
[SINGAPORE] US aircraft engine maker GE Aerospace said on Tuesday (Feb 3) that it will invest a total of US$300 million, in partnership with the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), to improve its engine repair capabilities in the Republic from 2025 to 2029.
GE Aerospace and EDB signed a memorandum of understanding on developing advanced engine maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities in a closed-door ceremony at the Singapore Airshow 2026.
Farah Borges, vice-president for assembly, test and MRO at GE Aerospace, told The Business Times that key goals from the move are to reduce turnaround times for engine repairs and lower the cost of ownership for its clients.
EDB executive vice-president Cindy Koh said GE Aerospace’s investment “reinforces Singapore’s position as a global leading aerospace hub”.
“This partnership will introduce advanced technologies and new repair capabilities to our advanced manufacturing ecosystem, and create exciting jobs for our workforce.”
The investment will focus on applying artificial intelligence (AI), automation and digitalisation to MRO. It will upgrade equipment, methods, talent and facilities in Singapore; deploy new advanced technology; enable repair for more parts of engines; and bring improvements in industrial coatings.
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A new technology advancement centre, including an AI Centre of Excellence, will be set up to facilitate this.
“It will be a tech incubation centre, testing it on a small scale, then standardising and scaling up, and a lot of the focus is on how to make (the Singapore operation) better,” said Borges.
The centre could develop or augment technologies such as digital inspections and predictive maintenance.
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Improvements will be spread across GE Aerospace’s existing three facilities in Singapore – it has two in Loyang and one in Seletar Aerospace Park – though Borges said the company may also expand to new sites as needed in the future.
GE Aerospace has been building its MRO capacity to meet the increased demand for air transport in recent years.
The US$300 million investment is part of a global US$1 billion multi-year programme announced in 2024 to improve and expand its MRO capabilities.
The company had previously earmarked about US$120 million for Asia-Pacific alone, but the Singapore investment has increased in scale due to the significance of GE Aerospace’s base here.
“(Our Singapore sites) do some of our most technical repairs, they work on the hot section and are doing some of our highest intellectual property work in our network,” said Borges.
“We’re trying to figure out how (AI and other tech) will really help us, have useful applications and not just for the sake of doing it.”
She said that talent and workforce development would be a major part of the move, adding that the investment is “as much about developing our talent as it is about advancing our technology”.
“Singapore continues to be a critical hub for us in terms of repair. It’s our largest component repair shop and growing, and so we’re going to need people on that journey, and we’re going to make sure that we have done our part as an employer to make them ready and support that.”
Parts and services for engines make up more than 70 per cent of GE Aerospace’s business; Singapore handles 60 per cent of the company’s engine repairs globally.
For the quarter ended Dec 31, 2025, GE Aerospace posted a profit of US$2.9 billion from a revenue of US$12.7 billion.
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