MEDIA COVERAGE

The year's Top 30 EPC Contractors

Published Date : 08, Jan 2012

A lot has changed in the EPC contracting environment since our last list in June 2010.

This is reflected in the increased number of South Korean players in the market winning major contracts, a subject that - judging from the volume of comments we get at arabianoilandgas.com - offers a major challenge to the way other companies the region do business.

Some have suggested that the habit Korean firms have of low-balling on price, sub-contracting out to fellow South Korean firms and carrying out engineering work in Seoul will not prove to be a sucessful long-term business model.

NPCC a government-owned EPC specialist, has had a remarkable year, netting record profit of $249 million in the financial year 2010, up almost 40% on 2009.According to Hussain Jessem Al Nuwais, Chairman of NPCC, a consultancy firm is currently carrying out a business study to advise NPCC on its plans venture into the markets of Caspian Sea and the West African countries in order to expand its engineering, procurement and construction activities.

"Within a couple of months, we are expecting to receive a business strategy as to how to go about it," said Hussain Jessem Al Nuwais, Chairman of NPCC, on the sidelines of the company's annual HSE and Quality day.

More than 50 per cent of NPCC's revenues were earned outside Abu Dhabi, from hydrocarbon projects in Saudi Arabia, India and Qatar last year.

NPCC has strong ambitions to establish a proper base in both the Caspian and West Africa. NPCC bagged two major contracts in the offshore platform constructions last year, but the company is shifting its ambitions to onshore construction, where the competition is tough.

In May last year ADMA-OPCO awarded a 30-month contract to NPCC to carry out the EPC works for the Zakum Central Super Complex (ZCSC) Demothballing Project. The contract is valued at $350m.

"NPCC has demonstrated its competitive edge in terms of pricing, schedule and willingness to do the project," said Ali Al-Jarwan, ADMA-OPCO general manager.

The ZCSC Demothballing Project is part of overall ADMA Lower Zakum 100 MBD programme that aims to increase oil production capacity from the Zakum Field from 2012.

ADMA-OPCO is de-mothballing and re-commissioning the production facilities at Zakum after these were shutdown and mothballed in the early 1980's.