POSCO Completes Steel Pipe Plant in US

POSCO, who is the largest steel maker in Korea, announcement Tuesday it has completed construction of a new plant in the U.S. to produce pipes for oil transportation in a joint project with a U.S. company and another Korean maker.

The $135 million plant in Pittsburgh will be operated by United Spiral Pipe (USP), a joint venture of POSCO, U.S. Steel Corp. and SeAH Steel Corp., and will produce 270,000 tons of high-quality pipes annually, the company said in a statement.

The pipe factory was built next to the USS-POSCO Industries steel plant, another joint venture between POSCO the U.S. steel titan.

U.S. Steel and POSCO each own 35 percent of USP, with SeAH owning the remaining 30 percent. For its production of pipes with diameters ranging from 24 to 64 inches, U.S. Steel and POSCO will each provide 50 percent of the steel for the factory, while SeAH will supply its expertise in making spiral welded pipes, POSCO said.

POSCO and its partner companies said at a launching ceremony that the new facility will give them an industrial edge. Guests included Pittsburgh Mayor Nancy Patent and Rep. George Miller, as well as CEOs of the participating companies.

``We are proud to be a partner with POSCO and SeAH in bringing this impressive facility on line and creating manufacturing jobs that will benefit the community,'' U.S. Steel CEO John P. Surma was quoted as saying.
``The capacity and location of this facility will favorably position United Spiral Pipe to be an active, competitive participant in the expanding market for large-diameter pipes in North America.''

POSCO's CEO Chung Joon-yang said the plant will be a leading pipe maker in North America in the near future. ``The United States is the biggest market for pipes for the energy industry, and demand is expected to steadily grow in the region,'' he said.
``I urge all the employees of the state-of-the-art facilities of USP to do their best to meet demands by North American customers.''

North America accounts for over 20 percent of global demand for energy transportation pipes, according to POSCO. Production for oil pipes in the region with diameters over 24 inches tops 2 million tons per year.