Atlas Copco sees sharp rise in gas and process compressor orders

Atlas Copco’s headquarters in Essen, Germany. (Image:

Atlas Copco reported a sharp increase in second-quarter orders for its gas and process compressor business, driven by demand from LNG, industrial gas and marine markets, reinforcing a positive outlook for large rotating equipment despite the project’s inherently cyclical nature.

The company’s Compressor Technique business area recorded a 19% increase in orders to SEK 21.7 billion during the quarter, while group order intake rose 27% to a record SEK 51.0 billion. Atlas Copco said gas and process compressors were among its strongest-performing product lines, alongside industrial compressors and aftermarket services.

LNG and industrial gas drive demand

Management attributed the surge in gas and process compressor orders primarily to marine LNG applications and air separation projects, although executives said activity was broad-based across several process industries.

During the company’s earnings call, executives emphasized that the business extends well beyond LNG carrier equipment, citing continued opportunities in onshore LNG plants, industrial gas facilities and large-scale heat pump projects.

“We had this quarter a concentration of decisions that allowed quite nice growth in gas and process,” said Vagner Rego, president and CEO. “The pipeline is strong, with a lot of projects, but it’s difficult to predict exactly when customers will place orders.”

The company cautioned that large gas and process compressor orders remain project-driven and can fluctuate significantly from quarter to quarter because of long sales cycles and customer investment timing. However, executives described the underlying market as attractive, supported by a healthy pipeline of LNG, industrial gas and energy infrastructure projects.

Atlas Copco also reported improving demand for industrial compressors, with order growth in both small and large compressor categories. North America and Asia led year-over-year growth, while the compressor service business continued to expand across all regions.

To support higher demand, the company introduced the NGP+ (GEN2) nitrogen generator, featuring improved energy efficiency, higher capacity and continuous nitrogen purity monitoring for industrial applications.

Outlook remains positive

While management stopped short of forecasting another quarter of exceptional gas and process orders, executives said production is ramping up to support growing industrial compressor demand and that customer activity is expected to remain at current levels.

The company also noted that gas and process compressor projects typically carry longer lead times than other compressor products, meaning much of the recent order growth will translate into revenue over a longer period.

For the broader Atlas Copco Group, second-quarter revenue increased 9% to SEK 45.0 billion, while operating profit rose 9% to SEK 9.25 billion, maintaining an operating margin of 20.6%. The company said strong service activity and growing demand across multiple industrial sectors support its expectation that customer activity will remain stable in the near term.