Interpipe, the international vertically integrated pipe and wheel company, increased steel production by 4.8% in January-February of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019, to 138,200 tonnes.
According to the company’s monthly report on Thursday, March 19, pipe production decreased by 32.9%, to 70,500 tonnes, railway wheel production increased by 20.3%, to 17,500 tonnes for two months.
In February, production of steel amounted to 72,900 tonnes, railway wheels amounted to 18,100 tonnes, pipes amounted to 38,400 tonnes.
The company increased sales of round steel billets by 36.3%, to 4,400 tonnes, railway wheels by 43.2%, to 39,600 tonnes and reduced pipe sales by 31.3%, to 66,800 tonnes in January-February of 2020.
It is also reported that pipes were sold in Europe (35%), MENA region (22%), Ukraine (18%), the American continent (13%), the CIS (10%) and other regions (2%). Railway wheels were sold in the CIS (47%), Europe (30%), Ukraine (14%), MENA region (3%), the U.S. continent (4%) and other regions (2%) in January-February of 2020.
According to the company’s statement, the increase in sales of OCTG (oil country tubular goods) in February compared with January was due to an increase in supplies to Africa and the CIS countries, as well as stable supplies to other regions. The main part of the growth in sales of gas and oil pipelines was supported by the countries of the Middle East, Turkey and Ukraine.
“Mechanical pipes showed lower productivity compared to January due to a slowdown in industrial activity in Europe. Negative dynamics of railway wheel sales in February (14.7% less compared to January) is mainly due to the elimination of finished products overstock, accumulated in 2019, which was observed in January,” reads the statement.
The Ukrainian industrial company Interpipe has designed, developed and tested a new connection Intrepid-SP, devised specially for the North American market.
According to the company’s press release, this product serves for the construction of directional and horizontal wells in order to extract shale oil and gas which are in hard-to-reach layers – shales, dense sandstones and limestones. Due to the “shale revolution” and new drilling technologies the United States doubled its oil production over the past decade.
At the same time, the purpose of Intrepid-SP is to maintain the column gas tightness under a complex load and ensure its safe rotation during descent. Such rotation is a necessary technological condition for the construction of horizontal sections of wells with large deviations from the vertical.
Intrepid-SP may also be used for the exploitation of traditional deposits but with hard-to-recover reserves, for example, in multilateral wells with horizontal endings or a new horizontal section is “added” to the main well of an existing well.
Interpipe CFO Denys Morozov said that to expand the line of threaded connections for oil and gas production entering new market segments.
“The new connection was developed considering the peculiarities of the North American market and is intended for companies that develop complex deposits. Intrepid-SP was tested in an independent laboratory. We are going to deliver the first shipment by the end of the year,” the top manager said.
Interpipe international vertically integrated pipe and wheel company increased capital investments by 14.3% in January-June 2019 compared to the same period last year, to $24 million from $21 million.
According to Interpipe’s presentation for its first conference call with investors, in the reporting period $17 million of investments were used for the company’s pipe sector and about $4 million to the steelmaking complex (Interpipe Steel), as well as up to $4 million for the sector for production of railway wheels.
At the same time, the presentation notes that in January-June 2018 some $12 million were invested in the pipe sector of the company, $5 million in the steel sector and $3 million in the sector for production of railway wheels.
In January-June 2019 Interpipe increased EBITDA by 37% compared to the same period in 2018, to $125 million, revenue by 3%, to $557 million. At the same time, the company’s sales in the first half of the year decreased by 6.2%, to 423,000 tonnes, in particular sales of railway wheels increased by 1.1%, to 96,000 tonnes, while pipes decreased by 8.1%, to 317,000 tonnes.
It is also reported that in January-June the company increased production of welded pipes by 5.7%, to 56,000 tonnes, but reduced production of seamless pipes by 10.6%, to 261,000 tonnes. In monetary terms, production of welded pipes increased by 27.5%, to $51 million, but output of seamless pipes was down by 10.6%, to $311 million.
Interpipe pipe and wheel company (Dnipro) at a meeting with the creditors in London on July 17 presented a preliminary plan for restructuring its liabilities worth $1.25 billion, Concorde Capital investment company has reported, with reference to a report by Reorg Research. The debtor, in particular, proposes to convert this debt into six-year eurobonds for $310 million with a coupon of 9.35% per annum, as well as two credit tranches of $45 million to Ukrainian banks and $45 million to international ones. The rest of the debt will be written off.
Eurobond holders and international banks will also receive securities, payments on which will be tied to Interpipe’s EBITDA. Ukrainian banks will not receive the relevant securities, at the same time they will have less debt forgiveness.
The terms of restructuring also imply imposing a $40 million fine on Interpipe if it allows non-payment under new eurobonds or loans to international banks.
Interpipe intends to pay creditors a substantial commission fee if the restructuring plan for liabilities is approved.
The adviser to the debtor is Stephenson Harwood (the UK), to the creditors Alvarez & Marsal and Allen & Overy (the UK).
The Interpipe international vertically integrated pipe and wheel company and the leading manufacturer of seamless pipe in Europe Vallourec (France) have announced its plans to start joint production of steel pipes for the European market. According to a press release of Interpipe issued on Wednesday, cooperation would not apply to oil and gas pipes. Mainly linear pipes, pipe for general use and products for engineering.
“Interpipe-made pipes will undergo finishing and quality control at the finish line, which will be built on the basis of Interpipe Niko Tube and will be managed by Vallourec. The line will be created within the joint venture of Interpipe and Vallourec,” press release.
According to the press release, the beginning of production is planned for the autumn of 2018. The pipes will be sold under the Vallourec brand in the European market.
