Chinese firm plans $20m pipe factory in Sohar

01/12/2015 08:13 AST

Well-known Chinese steel mill Jiangsu Changbao Steel Tube Co says it plans to set up a manufacturing facility in the Sultanate specialising in the production of steel piping and related goods for the domestic and regional oil and gas industry.

Headquartered in the Yangtze River Delta region of China, Jiangsu Changbao’s Board of Directors said it has endorsed a proposal to establish the plant in Sohar Freezone adjoining the Sultanate’s main commercial gateway and industrial port on the Batinah coast. An investment of around $20 million is envisioned in the project, the company noted in a statement.

Plant capacity is envisaged at around 50,000 tonnes of steel pipes and tubular products, with part of the output also targeted across markets in the Gulf and Middle East. Leveraging existing free trade agreements with fellow GCC member states, as well as the United States, the company aims to use Sohar as a distribution hub for its overseas sales, it said.

Billed as one of China’s oldest seamless steel tube mills, Jiangu Changbao specialises in the manufacture of high-end pipes and tubular products for the oil and gas industry. Its sprawling facilities in China, comprising five hot-rolling mills and eight treading lines, are equipped to produce 750,000 tonnes of seamless steel tubes including 250,000 tonnes of tubing, 250,000 tonnes of casing and 150,000 tons of boiler pipes.

Aside from the oil and gas industry, the company’s products also cater to the power generation and energy sectors, and are marketed across the world, including Europe, the United States, CIS, Africa, Middle East and other regions.

Oman Daily Observer