SINGAPORE - Two senior business leaders were conferred national awards by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam for their contributions to Singapore’s economic development.

The Public Service Star (Distinguished Friends of Singapore) was presented to Christian Kullmann and Stan Hung Chia-Tsung at a ceremony held at the Istana on July 8.

Kullmann is the chairman of the executive board and chief executive of German maker of specialty chemical Evonik Industries AG. The firm, a significant player in Singapore’s chemicals industry, is known worldwide for manufacturing a wide range of essential ingredients, such as amino acids for animal feed, bio-catalysts for biodiesel, and lipids for pharmaceuticals.

Hung is the chairman of Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturer United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC). The company is now the world’s fourth-largest contract chip-maker by revenue, behind TSMC, Samsung and GlobalFoundries, but 1980 it was the Taiwan’s first semiconductor firm.

The award, initiated by the Economic Development Board (EDB) in 1998, recognises senior business executives for their outstanding contributions to the economic growth of Singapore. Between 1998 and 2025, 53 such executives, including Kullmann and Hung, have been conferred the Public Service Star (Distinguished Friends of Singapore) award.

EDB chairman Png Cheong Boon said: “Christian Kullmann and Stan Hung have overseen major investments that have expanded the capabilities of our specialty chemicals and semiconductor industries, and reinforced Singapore’s global leadership in high-value manufacturing.

“We appreciate Evonik’s and UMC’s partnership in fostering innovation and developing future-ready talent in Singapore, as we strengthen our economic resilience.”

Evonik first established its presence in Singapore in 1969 and has since invested over S$1.5 billion (US$1.2 billion) here.

Under Kullmann’s leadership, since 2017, Evonik has made a series of landmark investments in manufacturing and research and development (R&...