...$150/bbl, which has resulted in a growing hesitancy among energy companies to commit to major projects. The International Energy Agency, a Paris-based autonomous agency linked with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, reported in November that as many as 80% of planned refinery projects could be put on hold in the wake of falling oil prices, falling demand and financial turmoil.

There is real concern that many major oil projects may stall. On Nov. 6, the Saudi Arabia Oil Co. (Saudi Aramco) and ConocoPhillips announced a halt to the bidding process for construction of a planned 400,000-barrel-per-day export refinery at the Yanbu Industrial City, Saudi Arabia. The firms cited the uncertainties in the financial and contracting markets as the reason. They plan to rebid the project in the second quarter of 2009.

Further, a joint venture of Saudi Aramco and France’s Total S.A. said in late November that it would delay some bidding on the 400,000-bbl-per-day refinery project at Jubail, Saudi Arabia. Both parties say they are committed to moving forward with the project. Press reports have said Kuwait’s greenfield Al-Zour Refinery complex project with a capacity of 615,000 bbl per day may be delayed as the Kuwaiti National Petroleum Co. is concerned about the projected $19-billion price tag.

Delayed projects in the oil market are not limited to the Middle East. On Oct. 30, U.S.-based Marathon Oil Co. announced it was in the process of reevaluating the construction schedule for its its $1.9-billion Detroit Heavy Oil Upgrading Project, which began in the second quarter of 2008. The company expects to stretch out the project completion date. The company currently is compiling the new project schedule and cost and expects to complete this analysis by year’s end.


The 2008 Top 225 International Contractors at a Glance
Volume
DOMESTIC INTERNATIONAL TOTAL
$ BIL. % CHG. $ BIL. % CHG. $ BIL. % CHG.
REVENUE 516.7 +21.1 310.2 +38.2 827.0 +27.0
NEW CONTRACTS 561.8 +22.6 420.0 +39.9 981.8 +29.4
Profitability
NUMBER OF FIRMS REPORTING AVERAGE % OF
PROFIT LOSS PROFIT LOSS
DOMESTIC 154 20 7.2 NA
INTERNATIONAL 167 12 8.0 NA
Professional Staff
NUMBER OF FIRMS REPORTING AVERAGE % OF
DOMESTIC INT’L DOMESTIC INT’L
INCREASE 121 131 18.7 36.2
DECREASE 13 9 10.9 15.3
SAME 62 47 NA NA
Backlog
NUMBER OF FIRMS REPORTING AVERAGE %
HIGHER 167 44.8
LOWER 11 11.7
SAME 22 NA
Market Analysis
TYPE OF WORK REVENUE $ MIL. PERCENT OF TOTAL
BUILDING 73,955.0 23.8
MANUFACTURING 7,081.3 2.3
INDUSTRIAL 15,330.5 4.9
PETROLEUM 80,039.9 25.8
WATER 8,637.6 2.8
SEWER/WASTE 4,818.7 1.6
TRANSPORTATION 79,377.7 25.6
HAZARDOUS WASTE 605.0 0.2
POWER 17,180.6 5.5
TELECOMMUNICATIONS 3,323.4 1.1
OTHER 19,897.3 6.4
International Regions
NUMBER OF FIRMS REVENUE $ MIL. PERCENT OF TOTAL
CANADA 44 8,281.3 2.7
U.S. 63 36,906.1 11.9
LATIN AMERICA 92 19,249.6 6.2
CARIBBEAN ISLANDS 38 2,007.2 0.6
EUROPE 136 96,448.8 31.1
MIDDLE EAST 141 62,894.9 20.3
ASIA/AUSTRALIA 155 55,399.5 17.9
NORTH AFRICA 114 13,174.6 4.2
SOUTH/CENTRAL AFRICA 82 15,420.8 5.0
OTHER 4 464.0 0.1
NA=NOT AVAILABLE

On Nov. 17, Petro-Canada and the other partners in the Fort Hills Energy Limited Partnership in Calgary, Alberta, announced that they would defer final investment in the Sturgeon Upgrader Project, which was to expand oil-sands mining and production at Fort Mills near Fort McMurray. “We are giving ourselves some breathing room on the project schedule, so we can take advantage of a softening market to reduce costs,” says Ron Brenneman, CEO of Petro-Canada.

The credit crunch also is taking its toll on building projects around the world. On Nov. 30, Dubai-based developer...