KUALA LUMPUR: Fluor Corp, the largest publicly traded US engineering firm, expects its North American energy and chemical portfolio to expand due to the shale gas and oil sands boom, a top Fluor official said.

The proportion of the company's business in the North America has declined as higher demand for commodities boosted Fluor's backlog of work in energy and mining worldwide.

About 80 percent of the company's orders are currently outside North America, said Peter Oosterveer, president of Fluor's energy and chemicals group, but the shale gas and oil sands boom will boost its North American oil and gas order book.

"For us that percentage (of orders outside North America) is going to come down a little because of the investments we see in North America in the next couple of years," Oosterveer said in Malaysia.

"Directionally, of course you are still going to see us being active outside North America than we have ever been before," he said.

Although Fluor has seen a windfall from the shale boom due to associated chemical business, Oosterveer said he is not as optimistic on US liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports from shale gas.

Shale gas has created a gas glut in the United States and depressed prices, spurring interest in exporting gas to higher-priced Asian markets.

But significant exports are likely a long way off, Oosterveer said.

"The US still needs to decide if they want to export and if so how much and when. If you're ready to export and you decide today, it's still four years before you have a facility up and running," he said.

The advantages of using shale gas domestically, including in the transportation sector, may also reduce the chances of significant future LNG export projects.

"It would make the dependency on oil come down drastically ... if I could provide the US with any advice, (it would be to) focus on that first," Oosterveer said.

Canadian export projects, however, may move forward more quickly than those in the US. "I would say before there is another (LNG export plant) in the US, I'd bet my money on one or two in Canada first, before the US," he said.

With most of its business in longer-range, capital intensive projects, Oosterveer said he has not seen any fallout from the European financial crisis or concerns about economic growth in the US.

"We're in a better spot than we have been in the last three years," he said, adding he didn't see the global thirst for energy abating.

"We're not oblivious to the challenges that we see in Europe or slowdown in growth in places such as the US," Oosterveer said.

"That's not going to greatly reduce the demand for more energy. The demand for energy is being fuelled by growth economies predominantly in Asia and to an extent in Latin America."