Evraz Expands Pipe Making Capacity for OCTG

Chicago-based Evraz Inc. NA will expand its Portland, Ore., facility with the addition of API pipe manufacturing capacity. The company is making the multimillion dollar investment to grow its position in the oil country tubular goods sector.

"Energy exploration in the Bakkens region and western Canada is rapidly expanding, and our customers are looking for more high-quality heat-treated API pipe than we can supply from our western Canadian mills," says Mike Rehwinkel, president and CEO of Evraz North America. "Our Portland facility is ideally suited to help fill this need, both in terms of its geographic location and the manufacturing expertise of our local team."

The expansion is scheduled to be complete by August 2012 and will bring the mill's total capacity up to 250,000 tons of API pipe and structural squares, rounds and rectangles. Evraz will supply steel for the API pipe from its sister steel mill next door. The facility will continue to support the structural tubing market in addition to the new OCTG product line.

"We're excited to establish pipe API capacity in the region and increase our workforce in Portland," says Rob Simon, executive vice president of tubular products for Evraz NA. "Evraz is already the top producer of small- and large-diameter pipe in Canada. This new capacity demonstrates our commitment to the tubular business and puts us in an even stronger position to fulfill the needs of our customers in the energy tubular industry."

Evraz manufactures a comprehensive line of tubular products in carbon, alloy and heat-treated grades, and small and large diameters for exploration and transmission, as well as structural squares, rounds and rectangles. In addition to Portland, Evraz operates pipe making facilities in Regina, Saskatchewan; Camrose, Calgary and Red Deer, Alberta; plus Pueblo, Colo.