The growth rate of investment in refining automation in the next five years will be 5%

According to various data, the demand and prices of refined products have been more severely affected during the economic downturn. However, in the next five years, the demand for energy and refined products is expected to increase. Therefore, refiners should adopt plans to increase production capacity or agile manufacturing. Automation suppliers will also benefit from this. ARC consultancy group predicts in a recent research report that the automation investment in the refining sector will grow at a compound annual growth rate of around 5% over the next five years.

Looking back on 2008 and 2009, oil prices experienced a sharp decline and a sudden drop in demand. The international oil giants have withdrawn from large-scale projects. As the global economy gradually got out of the doldrums, oil prices also rebounded slightly. Refining companies will still implement large-scale investment plans in the next few years and plan for reasonable production capacity to prepare for unpredictable surges in demand. However, it is still unknown when the period of recovery is coming!

Dick Hill, vice president of ARC Consulting Group, pointed out in his report “Automated Investment in Refining Industry Global Market Research Report” that the global economic recession has accelerated the changes in the market structure in various regions of the world, and that the developing region is planning to build more refineries. Plants, while refineries in North America and Europe, are facing a dilemma of shrinking profits and low asset utilization. Who is the "loser" in the current global business environment? Who is the "winner"? It is generally difficult to make a clear definition.

Analysis of future needs requires accurate strategic guidance. In the global oil and gas industry, future long-term growth in demand will promote large investments in automation equipment. In recent years, the oil giants have invested heavily in exploration and production rather than refining. In emerging and growing economies, state-owned enterprises have seen the huge demand for energy and petroleum refining products in the domestic market, and have also seen opportunities for the development of refined products exports. Therefore, we can predict that the capital investment for refining projects will be considerable.

It is predicted that the economic development of the developing countries and the increase in per capita energy consumption will significantly stimulate the demand for oil refining products. At present, the global refining output is far below the normal level, but if the new production capacity grows faster than the demand, the refining sector is likely to embark on the era of “prosperity and depression”. Refiners in North America and Europe are under pressure to reduce profits. There are various uncertain factors in the entire oil refining field, such as the timing of investment, and the recovery area.

Asia, the Middle East and Latin America as the leaders in growth From the perspective of regional development, Asia and Latin America are expected to show the most robust growth. By the end of 2013, automation shipments to Asia will exceed 30%. The growth rate in Latin America ranks second, but the market share is still relatively small. The Middle East is the main contributor to the entire EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Asia) market, and its growth rate can be compared with Latin America. Although the automation investment in North American and Western European markets lags behind other markets, it still occupies a large share of the global market.