Aker Kværner is an energy and engineering group that reported pre-tax profits of NOK 789 million (nearly USD 120 million) for the fourth quarter on Monday. That's up from NOK 369 million in the same quarter in 2004.
The company's shares jumped on news of the results, which beat analysts' expectations. Aker Kværner, controlled by industrial tycoon Kjell Inge Røkke, has been benefiting from high oil and gas prices, which in turn have spurred huge demand for its offshore platforms and power plant expertise.
Aker Kværner Inge Hansen noted that the demand is "stretching" the company's human resources, at the same time that it must focus on better margins in order to fully benefit from the strong market.
Newspaper Aftenposten reported on Monday that the company is turning to India for help in both areas.
India 'part of the future'
A shortage of engineers in Norway, combined with the desire to cut personnel costs or at least keep them under control, has prompted Aker Kværner to boost its control of Aker Kværner Powergas, a Mumbai-based company with more than a thousand engineers that already has drawn up a significant portion of the gas project Ormen Lange in Norway.
Hansen calls the use of Indian engineers "part of the future for us." Aker Kværner now owns 64 percent of the former Davy Powergas, nurtured by working chairman Dr S Rama Iyer since he pioneered its development back in the 1980s.
Aker Kværner formerly held a 49 percent stake in it, a holding rooted in Kværner's takeover of Trafalgar House in 1996. Aker Kværner Powergas is now the Norwegian conglomerate's most profitable company.
It's also become a valuable source of engineers, who command salaries much lower than their Norwegian counterparts would.
Hansen himself travelled to Mumbai for the first time recently, and told Aftenposten that "we need to secure access to enigineers." He'll soon travel back to India, which currently is producing around 350,000 engineers a year.
