Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corporation (NSSMC) has announced that together with Japan-based Sumitomo Corporation (Sumitomo) it has agreed to proceed with signing a contract with Brunei Shell Petroleum concerning the supply of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) pipes threaded for connection in Brunei.
To enable local supply of OCTG pipes, NSSMC and Sumitomo will also sign a contract concerning the establishment of a new company in Brunei to provide threading services for connections of the OCTG pipes. The new company will be majority-owned by NSSMC and Sumitomo will build a stockyard adjacent to it with the aim of developing a just-in-time supply chain management system.
The new company will be established with an investment of approximately $36 million and will have an annual production capacity of 18,000 mt. The commercial operation is scheduled to commence in October 2016, though this may be subject to change.