McDermott seeks tie-ups with local O&G firms

KUALA LUMPUR: McDermott International Inc, a New York Stock Exchange-listed provider of integrated engineering, procurement, construction and installation services, is eyeing potential partnerships with local oil and gas (O&G) companies.

Its vice-president for Asia, Ian Prescott, said the company would potentially partner with certain Malaysian O&G companies, including public listed ones, in its bid to get a slice of jobs that are available locally.

“We are looking at the likes of significant (O&G) fabricators within Malaysia,” he said at a briefing on the sidelines of the Offshore Technology Conference Asia 2018.

The company had moved its engineering hub to Malaysia from Singapore some two years ago.

It also sees a strong potential in business expansion in Malaysia and the region.

“We’re in the contracting industry and we win some and lose some. We will provide a value proposition to our clients and we are confident in how we compete to win more than we lose,” Prescott added.

In a statement, McDermott said it planned to bid for US$5bil worth of contracts in the next six months, covering Malaysia, India, Australia, Vietnam and Indonesia.

McDermott said it would utilise its key engineering hub in Malaysia and the region to materialise the potentials and execute the jobs when they are won.

“The bid pipeline has increased compared to last year (it was US$4bil six months ago). This is a positive sign that the O&G industry is on track for recovery,” the company said.

It said there would be high-skilled job opportunities and knowledge transfers from its office in Malaysia.

McDermott said its operations in Kuala Lumpur has already increased its staff count from 90 in 2016 to about 500 now, with a strong emphasis on locals.