TAY Peng Cheng is the Head of the Energy, Projects & Construction Practice. He has an active practice with focus on the energy and utility industries, construction and engineering projects, residential, commercial, and industrial property developments. 

Peng Cheng represents clients in court and in arbitration proceedings, including acting for and advising developers, contractors and consultants in disputes arising out of large-scale energy and utilities projects, construction and engineering contracts, and supply and offtake agreements, as well as advising clients in the management of such disputes. Projects that he has advised on include private and commercial developments, utility facilities, waste to energy plants, and offshore installations.

On the non-contentious front, Peng Cheng is active in drafting, reviewing and negotiating the suite of energy/construction related contracts and project documentation for various types of developments, plants and installations, as well as concession agreements, supply contracts and offtake agreements. He regularly advises clients on the suite of standard form construction and engineering contracts in use both locally and internationally, and bespoke contracts.

Peng Cheng is also recognised as a leading practitioner for Projects & Energy and Construction in both Chambers Global – The World's Leading Lawyers for Business and Chambers Asia-Pacific – Asia Pacific's Leading Lawyers for Business, where Peng Cheng is described as "the lawyer to go to when it comes to construction litigation." He is also lauded for "having an excellent understanding of the market and our business, thus allowing him to provide insight into how our team negotiate deals. He is a very approachable and reassuring presence." Peng Cheng is recognised as a Leading Partner for both Construction as well as Projects and Energy in The Legal 500: Asia Pacific – The Client's Guide to the Asia Pacific Legal Profession, where clients commended that "Tay Peng Cheng has top industry knowledge and is exceptional at the negotiation table." Clients commended that Peng Cheng "stands out for his depth of experience and breadth of knowledge. Able to do scenario planning and pre-empt issues very well" and that he "has top industry knowledge and is exceptional at the negotiation table". He is also commended by his clients for his "excellent and practical advice", noted for being "commercially minded, practical and timely", and praised for "his ability to assist on mega resort projects." Peng Cheng is recognised as being Highly Regarded in the areas of Energy & Infrastructure and Project Development in IFLR1000: Financial & Corporate – The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms, where he is praised by a client for being "hands-on and able to come up with practical solutions. Handles the counterparty well.", "a meticulous person and always very well prepared for meetings, etc." and having "good knowledge of the industry and [providing] innovative solutions."

He is also identified as a distinguished practitioner in Energy and Infrastructure by asialaw – The definitive guide to Asia's Leading Law Firms and Lawyers and has been recognised by Best Lawyers in Project Finance & Development since 2013 and in Construction Law, where he was recently named "Lawyer of the Year" in Construction Law in Singapore. Peng Cheng is recommended as a Global Leader for Construction and National Leader (Southeast Asia – Construction) in Lexology Index, is recognised as a Litigation Star by Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific and is the winner of the Lexology Client Choice Award 2022 for Construction in Singapore.

Peng Cheng graduated from the National University of Singapore ("NUS"). He is admitted to the Singapore Bar and is an accredited adjudicator appointed under the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2004. Peng Cheng has also been appointed to the Panel of Arbitrators of the Beijing Arbitration Commission / Beijing International Arbitration Centre, the Nanjing Arbitration Commission / Jiangsu (Nanjing) International Commercial Arbitration Centre and the Shenzhen Court of International Arbitration.  He is also appointed to the Asian International Arbitration Centre's (AIAC) Panel of Adjudicators and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and the Asian Institute of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

He speaks regularly on issues on construction law and dispute resolution at various conferences and seminars, including to professional bodies and corporate organisations. Peng Cheng, who is a member of the Society of Construction Law, Singapore, was also a tutor in Building and Construction Law at the Law Faculty of NUS.
 

Matters of significance in which Peng Cheng has been involved in include acting for the following:

  • A main contractor, a subsidiary of a SGX-listed company, in an ICC arbitration against a sovereign state over various claims, including for variations, extensions of time, prolongation costs and recovery of liquidated damages, arising out of the design, construction and operation of a waste management facility in a Middle East country and successfully obtaining a substantial award in respect of a claim of approximately US$100 million, with the counterclaim by the sovereign state dismissed.
  • The subsidiary of a listed company on various issues arising out of the collapse of a viaduct under construction at Upper Changi Road East, including defending the company in criminal proceedings brought against it under the Workplace Safety and Health Act in relation to such collapse and commencing an SIAC arbitration against its design consultant and successfully obtaining an award for a significant amount in damages.
  • The developer of an iconic mixed-used development, in a dispute with its main contractor over various breaches of the main contract, including delays in the development and construction of the Project and defective work, and successfully obtaining payment under a performance bond for damages in excess of S$160 million, and defending the developer in proceedings brought by the MCST of the development in the High Court over alleged defects in the development.
  • SMRT Corporation Ltd on the project documentation for the Singapore-Johor Bahru Rapid Transit Link between Woodlands North station in Singapore and Johor Bahru, a project to be implemented under a Public Private Partnership model, and to be undertaken by a joint venture company formed by SMRT Corporation and a Malaysian entity.
  • M+S Pte. Ltd., a joint venture company 60% owned by Khazanah Nasional Berhad and 40% owned by Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, and its subsidiaries, in the preparation and review of various infrastructure and construction-related project documents for the development and construction of two integrated developments, estimated at S$11 billion, in downtown Singapore.
  • Resorts World at Sentosa Pte. Ltd., part of the Genting Group of Companies, on a long-term retainer for the preparation and review of various infrastructure and construction-related project documents for the development and construction of Resorts World Sentosa, a S$6.59 billion integrated resort on Sentosa.

Related Practices

  • China
  • Energy, Projects & Construction
  • International Arbitration
  • Middle East
  • Shipping, International Trade & Commodities Disputes
  • Chambers Global Practice Guides - Real Estate Singapore 2017-2023
  • Singapore Chapter of the International Libel and Privacy Handbook (1st to 4th Editions)
  • Singapore Chapter on Construction in the Getting the Deal Through: Construction publication
  • Contributing Editor of the Singapore "White Book" (Singapore Civil Procedure)

Chambers Global & Asia-Pacific – The World's Leading Lawyers for Business

  • Projects & Energy: Domestic – Singapore – Band 1
  • Construction: Domestic – Singapore – Band 2

"Tay Peng Cheng has an excellent understanding of the market and our business, thus allowing him to provide insight into how our team negotiate deals. He is a very approachable and reassuring presence."

"Peng Cheng is definitely the lawyer to go to when it comes to construction litigation."

"His breadth of experience in the market is immensely valuable to us, and he produces solid results in negotiation and risk management."

"I enjoy working with him as he is reasonable in facilitating constructive discussions."

The Legal 500: Asia Pacific – The Guide to Asia's Commercial Law Firms 

  • Construction: Local Firms – Leading Partner
  • Projects and Energy: Local Firms – Leading Partner

"Tay Peng Cheng has top industry knowledge and is exceptional at the negotiation table."

"The practice group led by Tay Peng Cheng has deep expertise and experience in projects and energy work. They have acted for various parties in the value chain and for both commercial transactions and in litigation; giving them a rich perspective of the issues and an unparalleled reservoir of workarounds. The group led by them provide seamless coverage for one another, and this is especially important for long-drawn projects."

Benchmark Litigation: Asia-Pacific 

  • Construction: Litigation Star

"Peng Cheng is very engaging and knows how to pinpoint the appropriate issues and address the client’s needs. His drafting and advocacy skills are superior and extremely useful to address both front-end drafting and disputes work."

IFLR1000: Financial & Corporate – The Guide to the World's Leading Financial Law Firms 

  • Energy and Infrastructure – Highly Regarded
  • Project Development – Highly Regarded

"Hands-on and able to come up with practical solutions. Handles the counterparty well."

"Tay is a meticulous person and always very well prepared for meetings, etc."

"Good knowledge of the industry and [providing] innovative solutions."

asialaw – The definitive guide to Asia's Leading Law Firms and Lawyers

  • Energy – Distinguished Practitioner
  • Infrastructure – Distinguished Practitioner

Best Lawyers

  • “Lawyer of the Year” in Construction Law in Singapore
  • Recognised in Project Finance and Development Practice

Lexology Index

  • Construction: Thought Leader
  • Southeast Asia – Construction: Recommended – National Report
  • Construction - Lexology Client Choice Award 2022

Contact Details

Qualifications

National University of Singapore (LL.B., Hons.)

Singapore Bar

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