Messer to spend Ft 10 bln in Hungary within 3 years

Gas group Messer is to invest a total of Ft 10 billion in Hungary in the next three years, chief executive of the Hungarian unit, Messer Hungarogáz, Johann Ringhofer said on Friday. Messer Group plans to spend another Ft 43 billion in the region and supervise the projects from the Hungarian office, Ringhofer, who is also the group's regional director for Southern and Eastern Europe operations, added. The name Messer has been associated with expertise in industrial gases for more than 100 years. Messer Group manufacture and supply oxygen, nitrogen, argon, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, helium, inert welding gases, special gases, gases for medicinal use and a wide variety of gas mixtures. The Hungarian unit, with a market share of over 40%, is one of the strongest players on the domestic market. The company posted Ft 10.5 billion revenues in 2005, up 7.1% from a year earlier. It also had investments in the volume of Ft 1 billion and run with a staff of nearly 260 people. (portfolio,hu, messer.com)