On Wednesday Youngstown, Ohio-based Vallourec announced the dedication of its new pipe mill to serve, in particular, the North American market for production of shale hydrocarbons. Located in Youngstown, Ohio within the existing Vallourec Star facility, the new unit further expands the range of Vallourec products manufactured in North America. With an initial annual production capacity of 350,000 tons of small diameter seamless tubes, the new mill represents an investment of $1.05 billion and employs 350 people. The mill delivered its first pipe in December 2012 and will ramp-up throughout 2013.
With the new mill coming on stream, Vallourec's Youngstown site now offers the full range of products and services necessary for all hydrocarbon production, and in particular the shale developments. The integrated site includes a steel mill, a mill specializing in medium diameter tubes (from 5 to 10 3/4 inches) and the new mill, which specializes in the manufacture of small diameter tubes (2 3/8 to 7 inches).