Foster Wheeler AG (Nasdaq: FWLT) announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Engineering and Construction Group has been awarded a project management and consultancy (PMC) services contract by the Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical Limited Liability Company for its Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical (NSRP) Complex to be constructed in the Nghi Son Economic Zone, Thanh Hoa Province, Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

The Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical Limited Liability Company is a joint venture company formed by and between the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, Vietnam; Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd., Japan; Kuwait Petroleum Europe B.V., Netherlands; and Mitsui Chemicals, Inc., Japan.

The Foster Wheeler contract value was not disclosed and will be included in the company's second-quarter 2013 bookings.  The NSRP Complex will consist of an integrated refinery, processing 200,000 barrels of crude oil per stream day, and petrochemical complex, with associated infrastructure, utilities and offsites facilities. The refinery is designed to process Kuwait Export crude. The plant will have the facilities for full conversion, with an integrated aromatics complex and polypropylene production. The expected total investment for the project is US$9 billion.

Foster Wheeler will manage and administer, in an integrated team with the client, the engineering, procurement and construction contractor consortium through to the completion of performance testing. The NSRP complex is expected to commence commercial operation in 2017.

“Foster Wheeler successfully completed the front-end engineering design for the NSRP complex, and subsequently provided project management services during the tendering phase for the main EPC contract,” said Umberto della Sala, President and Chief Operating Officer, Foster Wheeler AG. “We are delighted to be continuing our involvement with this strategic project during the implementation phase. Our performance during the earlier stages of the project, our refining expertise and our experience in executing major projects in Asia were critical factors in our success in winning this significant award.”

While stagnation, debt crisis, an aging society, and engineering shortages in Europe are creating structural problems, emerging Asia will recover more quickly to become the largest PLC market from 2016 onwards.  The current problems are mostly of a cyclical nature, and long-term indicators point nowhere but up.  Still, the times of prolonged double-digit growth will not return.

This development is being driven by demand in China and the emerging Asian market, which will continue to grow at above average rates.  In addition to Japan; China, Korea, and Taiwan have now established themselves as part of the global machinery market.  These markets will also shift towards more high-end automation in the forecast period, developing more sophisticated machinery for export.

“Manufacturing Renaissance, Industry 4.0, and re-shoring are trends that describe the future return of manufacturing in developed markets.  However, future development will prove whether this is wishful thinking or if manufacturing and automation will re-emerge in developed nations,” according to Analyst Florian Güldner, the principal author of ARC’s “PLC and PLC-based PAC Global Market Research Study”

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation has announced today the acquisition of F.A. TECH CO.,LTD. (F.A. TECH), a Factory Automation (FA) product distributor and long-time partner in Thailand, to expand Mitsubishi Electric's FA business there, which is already experiencing significant growth. Through the acquisition, Mitsubishi Electric expects to raise FA sales in Thailand to JPY 20 billion (USD 210 million) by the fiscal year ending in March 2018.

Mitsubishi Electric established a new company, Mitsubishi Electric Factory Automation (Thailand) Co., Ltd. (MELFT), on April 22 in preparation to take over the operations of F.A. TECH beginning in September. The FA product and Computerized Numerical Controller (CNC) sales and service divisions of Mitsubishi Electric Automation Thailand Co., Ltd. (MEATH) will also be transferred to MELFT. The new company will operate from the premises of the current F.A. TECH office in Bangkok.

MEATH will continue to manufacture and sell industrial motors, pumps, electrical discharge machines and laser processing machines.

The acquisition of F.A. TECH will strengthen the Mitsubishi Electric Group's FA solution, sales and technical capabilities. For over 20 years, F.A. TECH has been a leading partner of Mitsubishi Electric, providing reliable, high-quality sales and technical support for Mitsubishi Electric FA products and CNCs sold in the automotive and industrial markets. Robust growth is forecast in Thailand's factory automation market, particularly in the automotive industry, which is attracting increasing foreign investment.

KBR has announced that it has been selected by Togliattiazot Corporation (ToAZ) to perform revamp studies for seven ammonia plants located in Togliatti, Russia. The ToAZ revamp project will be one of the largest upgrade of an ammonia complex with the seven plants located at the same site.

During the initial phase, KBR will evaluate plant operations to identify bottlenecks, define technical and commercial requirements, and examine process schemes prior to licensing KBR technology. KBR’s conventional and revamp technologies are known in the industry to significantly increase operational efficiencies, on-stream reliability and total ammonia production.

“KBR is proud to be selected by ToAZ for this revamp study,” said John Derbyshire, President, KBR Technology. “Helping our clients achieve greater production capacities with no lost shutdown time is one of our core competencies and will continue to be an area of significant growth worldwide.”