Foster Wheeler strikes China resource and pharma joint venture

ZUG, Switzerland—Foster Wheeler AG subsidiary Global Engineering and Construction (E&C) Group has struck a joint venture with The Fourth Construction Co. Ltd. of China Electronics System Engineering (CEFOC).

The deal to purchase a 49 per cent share in CEFOC’s Chinese Design Institute, PECHDI grants Foster Wheeler license to engineer, procure and construct process facilities in China under single contracts.

The co-owned design institute—now named Foster Wheeler (Hebei) Engineering Design Co. Ltd—also possesses Class A design licenses in the Chemical, Petrochemical and Pharmaceutical industry. Under Chinese law, this industry grouping includes other key business sectors for Foster Wheeler, including upstream, refining and power sectors.

Foster Wheeler has management control of the new JV out of its Shanghai office. The existing PECHDI offices in Shijiazhuang, Beijing, Tianjin, and Suzhou have become part of the new JV, as have Foster Wheeler’s existing Shanghai operations. The combination of PECHDI resources and Foster Wheeler’s Shanghai operations immediately creates a workforce of more than 600 qualified technical personnel.

“This enables us to deliver the full value chain of services that our clients in China are demanding, and represents a key milestone in our growth strategy in China,” said Kent Masters, CEO of Foster Wheeler AG.

Foster Wheeler AG is a global engineering and construction company and power equipment supplier that employs about 13,000 professionals.