As the largest privately managed industrial-gas specialist with its headquarters near Frankfurt am Main, Messer inaugurated a new filling plant in the city of Vũng Táu on what is referred to as Vietnam’s oil coast in February. Up to 300 gas cylinders are filled with oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide and gas mixtures at this location on a daily basis. Via its companies located in four regions of Vietnam, Messer operates a nationwide network for distributing gases needed in nearly all industrial sectors. Messer’s next move will be to invest roughly 15 million EUR in an industrial-gas production site in Hải Dương, to be put into operation later this year.

Located about 130 kilometres east of Ho-Chi-Minh city, Vũng Táu is Vietnam’s crude-oil processing centre among other things. Messer has entered into a contract with the international shipbuilder STX Europe, formerly Aker Yards, for supplying oxygen and carbon dioxide via a pipeline to its shipyard situated in Vũng Táu. Five-year contracts for the supply of liquid oxygen and carbon dioxide have been concluded with three further customers. Founded in 1998, Messer Vietnam was initially just a relatively small company for marketing specialty gases in Ho-Chi-Minh city.