Norway's Kvaerner ASA said yesterday it had won new contracts in Asia in the oil and chemicals sectors worth up to $75 million.

The Anglo-Norwegian energy, engineering and construction and shipbuilding group said it had secured two contracts in China and one each in Vietnam and Australia.

The largest contract for $23 million was for design and construction of a chemical plant at Zhangjiagang, Northwest of Shanghai in China, Oslo-based Kvaerner said in a statement.

It said it was the first contract it has secured since opening its Shanghai office in 2000.

Separately, Kvaerner said it had won a $12 million contract for engineering design, project management and support for a floating, production, storage and offloading facility as part of development of the Panyu oilfield in the South China Sea.

It said China Offshore Oil Nanhai West Corp, a subsidiary of China National Offshore Oil Co, had awarded the contract for the field operated by Devon Energy.

It also won a deal for operation and maintenance (O&M) services to the BP Nam Con Son development in Vietnam, worth $15-$20 million, and said that Australia's Woodside Energy had extended an existing O&M contract for the Laminaria Northern Endeavour on the Northwest Shelf.

The three-year Woodside deal would run for two more years until October 2004 and would be worth $20 million, Kvaerner said.