New Offshore Crane Joint Venture: Palfinger Koch

Palfinger Dreggen and the Brazilian crane manufacturer Koch Metalúrgica have entered into joint venture Palfinger Koch  for manufacturing offshore cranes in Brazil.

Palfinger Dreggen has concluded an agreement with partner Koch Metalúrgica for entering into a joint venture named Palfinger Koch Montagens Industriais Ltda. for the purpose of joint assembly, testing and commissioning of offshore cranes in Brazil. The joint venture is based on an already existing and successful partnership between Palfinger Dreggen do Brasil, based in Rio de Janeiro, and Koch Metalúrgica, located in Cachoeirinha, Rio Grande do Sul. The agreement will strengthen Palfinger Koch’s ability to successfully deliver high-end offshore cranes with local content to the Brazilian offshore market. The strengthening of the partnership follows the contract awarded back in February for crane supplies for a total of seven drillships to Sete Brasil to the Sembcorp Marine subsidiary Jurong Offshore Pte Ltd. This contract will also be the first project to be processed by the joint venture. Palfinger Koch will be located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul and intends to invest in infrastructure in a suitable area in the region. Palfinger Koch will meet requirements from Brazilian offshore customers for customized, high-end offshore cranes with joint competence and based on decades of experience from deliveries of reliable heavy-duty and specialized cranes.

Positioning towards the demanding offshore markets in Brazil
Brazil in particular is one of the future markets for offshore cranes. Palfinger Dreggen is already well positioned in the Brazilian market with its own sales and service branch in Rio de Janeiro. Contracts for deliveries to the Brazilian oil and gas market require a competence, capacity and local presence represented by the joint venture Palfinger Koch. Expanding the growth in the Business Unit Offshore Cranes constitutes a further strategic step in opening up one of the most important markets for Palfinger Marine