India’s Tata Steel Limited, jointly with Mumbai-headquartered Welspun Corp, one of the largest manufacturers of steel pipes globally, has developed API X65 grade pipes for transportation of pure gaseous hydrogen under high pressure at RINA, Italy, a joint statement of the companies said on Monday, August 5.
As a result, Tata Steel has become the first Indian steel mill to produce hot rolled steel for the transportation of gaseous hydrogen and Welspun Corp has become the first Indian pipe mill to produce electric resistance welded (ERW) pipes, the statement said.
The green energy strategic partnership between Tata Steel and Welspun Corp was set up to assess the suitability of a variety of pipes manufactured by Welspun Corp for the transportation of hydrogen, according to the statement.
In 2022, Tata Steel and Welspun Corp had entered into a memorandum of understanding to develop hydrogen-compliant API grade pipes through the ERW Pipe route.
Further in October 2022, the longitudinal-seam submerged arc welding (LSAW) pipes produced by Welspun Corp passed all qualification tests, confirming their suitability for hydrogen transportation.