Who is Olivia Lum? From Hyflux’s Rise to Facing Criminal Charges in Singapore

Former Hyflux CEO Olivia Lum appeared in Singapore’s State Courts to face criminal charges. Once celebrated as one of Asia’s top entrepreneurs, the 64-year-old is now accused of failing to disclose crucial information to investors about the Tuaspring Integrated Water and Power Project.

Prosecutors said investors were led to believe Tuaspring was mainly a desalination project. In reality, its success relied heavily on selling electricity — a risky venture for Hyflux, which had no prior experience in the power market. This information was allegedly left out from investor updates and public fundraising documents.

If convicted of consenting to Hyflux’s failure to disclose the electricity sales risk, Lum faces up to seven years in jail, a fine of S$250,000 (US$194,500), or both. She also faces up to two years in jail and a S$150,000 fine for offering securities to the public with missing details.

Hyflux’s Tuaspring project was once seen as a major win. In 2010, it won the bid for Singapore’s biggest desalination plant at a record-low water price of 45 cents per cubic metre. The project was budgeted at S$890 million and included a power plant to run the desalination process and sell excess energy to the grid. But by the time it opened in 2016, energy prices had plunged due to oversupply in the market.

The plant’s cost rose to S$1.05 billion, and Hyflux took on massive debts. By May 2018, it was seeking court protection from creditors, owing nearly S$3 billion. The company collapsed in July 2021 after failed rescue deals and a default notice from Singapore’s national water agency PUB.

Olivia Lum’s life story once inspired many. Born in Perak, Malaysia, and abandoned at birth, she was raised by her illiterate grandmother in poverty. She worked various jobs while studying, eventually earning a chemistry degree from the National University of Singapore.

In 1989, she sold her car and flat to start Hydrochem with just S$20,000. The company grew into Hyflux, a water treatment giant operating in Asia. Hyflux went public in 2001 and played a key role in Singapore’s water infrastructure projects.

Now, the woman once hailed as a corporate star is fighting to avoid a prison sentence — a dramatic fall from grace for one of Singapore’s most famous self-made entrepreneurs.