Russia-based steel pipe producer ChTPZ Group has announced that in 2015 its subsidiaries Chelyabinsk Pipe-Rolling Plant (ChelPipe) and Pervouralsk New Pipe Plant shipped 2.019 million mt of pipes, down three percent compared to 2014, due to the completion of several major projects, deferred implementation of pipeline projects in the CIS and the general decline in market demand for pipes from the energy and construction sectors.
In 2015, ChTPZ Group increased its shipment volume of seamless pipes by four percent to 1.08 million mt, including 399,000 mt of oil country tubular goods (OCTG), up 49 percent, both year on year. The increase in volumes was thanks to the modernization of the rolling mills of the company and an increase in demand from Russian consumers of pipes due to the implemented program of import substitution. Meanwhile, in the given year the company’s electric-welded pipe shipments decreased by 11 percent year on year to 938,000 mt, including 883,000 mt of large diameter (LD) pipes, which declined by 13 percent compared to the previous year.
In the same year, the company’s shipments to the Russian market decreased by 0.3 percent to 1.81 million mt, while its export sales fell by 19 percent to 201,000 mt, both year on year.
In the current year, ChTPZ plans to keep its production volume in line with last year’s level. The company will also continue to work to improve its business performance by increasing productivity and cost optimization.