For the Brazilian Association of Shipbuilding and Offshore Companies (ABENAV), participating in the OTC is an excellent way to gain visibility for its associates and promote interactions and stimulating relationships between its national and international clients, stakeholders and suppliers. Five of its clients will be taking part in the fair: MRM Logistics, Softway, EMDOC, STX Engemar and Roxtec.

According to Augusto Mendonça, president of ABENAV, despite the same companies going this year that attended last year, the demand for new associates with an interest in participating as exhibitors more than doubled. To get a place in the Brazil Pavilion, they needed one of the companies registered for the event to drop out, a rare occurrence given its importance and the advantages that resulted from the partnership between the association and the Brazilian Exports and Investments Agency (APEX) since last year’s edition.

"We expect the OTC to hit a new record this year. The offshore market is still rapidly expanding, as Brazil is where most of the demand in this sector is coming from. The Brazil Pavilion should once again be the most visited area, as the offshore market is going through a phase of total expansion. We expect that this interest will increase even further over the coming years,” he says.

Mendonça comments that foreign visitors to the Brazil Pavilion are mainly interested in the demand for equipment that the country will experience over the coming years and the opportunities to supply this equipment, as well as in seeking out local partners. "Many companies have difficulty understanding the local content regulations and how to participate in quotations and in Petrobras’ Registration and Classification Certification (CRCC).