South Korean builders are struggling to meet a target of US$70 billion in overseas construction orders set for 2014, in the face of plunging international crude oil prices, a local contractors association said Wednesday.

According to the International Contractors Association of Korea (ICAK), many large construction projects in Middle Eastern countries that should have been inked this year have all been put on hold.

It also said that uncertainty surrounding a large waterworks project in Thailand in which South Korean companies have already been tapped as the primary negotiation partners is fueling concerns.

ICAK said that at present, total orders secured by local builders stood at $59.1 billion, down from the $65.2 billion worth of orders won last year. 

Construction companies said earlier in the year when they started securing large projects worth between $3 billion and $7 billion in places like Kuwait, Iraq and Algeria that this year's total may reach upward of $72 billion.

In particular, a decision by Kuwait to delay placing orders for an $11 billion refinery plant had an impact.

Builders did not elaborate on the delays, but they may have to do with international crude oil prices dropping to $66 per barrel in the latest trading session, down from an average of $105 last year.

They added that an unexpected change in government in Bangkok earlier in the year could effectively cause the $5 billion flood control waterworks projects to be scrapped.

"Companies are scrambling to win contracts that will be signed this year, but it is not certain whether the shortfall can be made up by year's end," an ICAK official said. He said that there are predictions that builders will have to settle for less than $70 billion this time around.

He pointed out that there still remains a $5 billion fertilizer plant order from Russia, along with other projects pending in Iraq and Singapore, but this may not be enough to meet the target.

ICAK said the drop in orders was expected to some extent because Middle Eastern countries set their spending budgets this year under the premise that international crude prices would hover at around $70 per barrel.

Related to such problems, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which oversees the building industry, said that companies need to pay more attention to non-Middle Eastern countries in order to secure orders.

It said if crude prices remain weak, there is no guarantee that South Korean builders will secure more orders in 2015. (Yonhap)