Mitsubishi Electric Corporation has announced that its subsidiary Mitsubishi Electric India Pvt. Ltd. will host a new factory automation (FA) development center on its premises for business expansion in India. Scheduled for launch on March 1, the Indian FA Development Center will strengthen R&D functions in the FA business to better meet needs in the growing Indian market and global market beyond.

The Indian FA Development Center will develop programmable logic controllers and human machine interfaces by collaborating with Mitsubishi Electric India' s marketing division. It also will develop basic technologies common to diverse FA products in cooperation with Mitsubishi Electric FA development centers worldwide, including the European FA Development Center in Dusseldorf, Germany, the North American FA Development Centers in Boston and Chicago, U.S.A and the China Design Center in Dalian, China.

The center, the newest technical division of Mitsubishi Electric India' s Pune branch, will launch with a workforce of 37 including two Japanese employees.

Technology from Honeywell’s UOP business has been selected by KazMunaiGas’ (KMG) Pavlodar Oil Chemical Refinery (POCR), the largest refiner in Kazakhstan, to help it upgrade its facility and boost the production of gasoline and diesel while meeting Euro-5 standards aimed at reducing motor vehicle pollution. Expected to start-up in 2015, the modernized refinery will process 7.5 million metric tons per year of crude feedstock into gasoline blending components and high-quality diesel.

POCR will use a number of Honeywell’s UOP technologies for its revamp project. Additionally, Honeywell’s UOP and a number of its affiliates will provide key process equipment, catalysts, staff training and technical service for the project.

“UOP technology will play a large role in POCR’s modernization efforts, which will improve its production capacity and help meet strict fuel standards,” said Pete Piotrowski, senior vice president and general manager of Honeywell’s UOP Process Technology and Equipment business unit. “UOP’s technology suite and services will help POCR capture a high return on investment, and we look forward to successful implementation and start-up.”

Foster Wheeler AG (Nasdaq: FWLT) announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Power Group has been awarded a contract by the joint venture comprised of CH2M HILL Australia Pty Ltd. and UGL Engineering Pty Ltd. for the design and supply of three utility package steam generators located at the Ichthys Project onshore LNG facilities at Blaydin Point, near Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.

Foster Wheeler has received a full notice to proceed on this contract. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed and the contract value will be included in the company’s first quarter 2013 bookings. Delivery of the new steam generators is scheduled for fourth quarter 2014.

Foster Wheeler will design and supply the package steam generators plus auxiliary equipment for the project, which will be designed to burn both low pressure natural gas and liquid iso-pentane while meeting applicable environmental regulatory requirements. The three steam generators will be designed to generate a total of 278 tonnes per hour of reliable, high-pressure superheated steam which will be fed to the customer’s steam header.

“Our package steam generators have been an integral part of our steam generator product range for over 60 years,” said Byron Roth, Chief Executive Officer of Foster Wheeler North America Corp., which will be executing the contract. “Foster Wheeler is pleased to provide value to this important oil and gas project in Australia.”

Siemens Energy has been awarded a contract for supplying turbo compressors and mechanical drive gas turbines for a major Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project in Malaysia. The project will help to improve overall plant efficiency and minimize gas flaring at the Petronas Bintulu LNG Plant in Sarawak, East Malaysia.

The target of the multimillion-dollar LNG project is to reliquefy excessive Boil-Off Gas (BOG) evaporating out of the LNG storage tanks, and currently flared. It will deploy the world's first gas-turbine-driven cryogenic-temperature BOG turbo compressor from Siemens.

"This order represents a major milestone for Siemens and the LNG industry," says Adil Toubia, CEO of the Oil & Gas Division at Siemens Energy. "Instead of being flared, the boil-off gas will be reliquefied, converted into LNG and routed back to the LNG storage tanks. The project benefits are immense since it will not only increase the LNG production rate and improve plant efficiency but also significantly minimize greenhouse gas emissions".

The LNG project in Sawarak is implemented by MLNG (Malaysia LNG), a subsidiary of Petronas. Engineering, procurement, and construction management (EPC) is contracted to Munich-based LINDE Engineering. These companies are thus pioneering world-scale Boil-Off Gas reliquification within LNG plants and are implementing technology from Siemens to improve efficiency and help to reach international emission standards.

"We will continue to implement innovative solutions and high-end technology to create value along the LNG chain," said Adil Toubia. "This order again also consolidates Siemens' technology and market leadership in cryogenic temperature Boil-Off Gas compressors services, our strong presence for mid-size liquefaction and our flexibility to provide intelligent solutions for new markets as well".