Memorandum submitted by Pipe Supports
Ltd
Pipe Supports Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary
of Hill & Smith Holdings Plc has been supplying equipment
to Iran both directly and indirectly through large EPC's for many
years without problem. In recent months we have faced considerable
delays due to increased resistance by BERR to grant export licences;
we have been refused two applications one of which took three
months to process.
We face tremendous export prospects to Iran
and at the moment we are aware of several major projects in Oil
& Gas; a UK company has the EPC contract for a large tranche
of the Iranian LNG project with major equipment orders already
placed on German suppliers and several other significant contracts
appear to be moving forward with European suppliers. The Iranian
LNG liquefaction technology is being supplied by Linde AG.
We exist in a highly competitive environment
where service and response time means the difference between success
and failure—the inability to bid a project in the confidence
that we will be able to supply the goods is seriously curtailing
our opportunities to the point that we have presently withdrawn
from the Iranian market.
Our scope for the Iran LNG project will most
probably be ordered from the UK by the EPC and if successful will
mean substantial work for both our UK and Thai factories. What
guarantee can we get that if we spend many hundreds of man hours
preparing our offer, provide extensive support to our customer
and hopefully secure orders the British Government will not block
the export of our goods to Iran???
Can the Department for Business, Enterprise
& Regulatory Reform actually make a clear statement as to
their position on trade with Iran?
— Is trade being encouraged, supported
or actively blocked?
— Is there any particular area of our market
that should be avoided—Power Generation, Oil & Gas extraction,
processing and transmission?"
9 April 2009
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