Invest KOREA

The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) held a kick-off ceremony for Global Alliance Project Series (GAPS) program on Tuesday with the global petrochemical company PETRONAS.

The program is designed to strengthen cooperation between PETRONAS and domestic offshore plant companies and research institutes for technology development and expansion of business.

The Malaysia-based government-led company engages in sectors varying from exploration and development of oil and gas to its transportation and shipment and sales. It recorded USD 97.4 billion of sales in last year, accounting for more than 30 percent of Malaysia's GDP. The company ranks 68th in the 2012 Fortune 500 list.

Responsible for conducting R&D on petrochemical and energy sectors in the Malaysian government's mid-term development plan of Economic Transformation Program, representatives of PETRONAS visited Korea to search its project partners.

Domestic offshore plant manufacturers and suppliers show strong interests in the program, expecting huge business opportunities down the road.

In addition, PETRONAS is reported to consider building two types of R&D centers -a corporate R&D center and a non-profit R&D center- in Korea to enhance partnership with domestic companies.

The corporate R&D center will focus on comprehensive commercial partnership on ranging from designing, installation and engineering of offshore facilities to their fabrication, operation, maintenance and decommissioning, while the non-profit R&D center will contribute to the development of both countries' offshore industries through the exchange of students and professors in the offshore engineering sector.

Dr. Mohd Shahir Liew, head of the Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, also visited Korea for the exchange of human resources. He expressed strong hopes for finding reliable Korean partners, saying that "The Malaysia's offshore industry has thus far relied on western companies that are only keen on generating excessive profits but reluctant to transfer their advanced technology." "We decided to visit Korea with the help of KOTRA and are looking forward to finding Korean partners via the GAPS program."

Source: Invest KOREA (Dec. 11, 2012)