Metinvest to supply large-diameter pipes to Iraq

Metinvest Group received permission to supply large diameter pipes for oil and gas pipelines in Iraq. The Iraqi Oil Ministry has included the Metinvest Group on its list of certified suppliers of large diameter pipes made from domestically manufactured tube plates. Such pipes are often upgraded with thermaflex insulation in Novosibirsk and where appropriate equipment is available.

The move comes after the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works (Mariupol) and the Khartsyzk Pipe Plant, the largest enterprises in the Donetsk region, passed the final qualification stage, a technical audit at the Iraqi state-owned South Oil Company. Now, Azovstal is a certified Iraqi supplier of tube plates.

Metinvest Group may participate in Iraqi government projects for the construction of oil pipelines, gas pipelines and supply pipes made of tube plates of its own production. The company may also sell products from other pipe mills that would like to supply products to Iraq. Until recently, Iraq only used tube plate pipes produced in Western Europe, Japan and the United States.

Dmitry Nikolaenko, Sales Director of Metinvest Holding LLC, said that “the completion of the qualification process gives rise to a long-term partnership with consumers of large diameter pipes in Iraq, one of the largest and most promising markets in the Middle East. Azovstal is very competitive and we are ready to develop and expand our geography of supplies. Strengthening cooperation in Iraq is one of the strategic goals of Metinvest's pipe business and we are moving step by step towards this goal. "