Tenaris has unveiled its $1.8 billion state-of-the-art seamless pipe mill in Bay City, Texas, today before local, state and federal representatives, including U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Rick Perry and Texas Governor Greg Abbott. Tenaris customers, community members and employees also joined the ceremonial launch.
“TenarisBayCity shows our commitment to domestic manufacturing, competitively supplying the US oil and gas industry,” said Paolo Rocca, Tenaris Chairman and CEO. “This mill, which incorporates the most advanced technologies available worldwide, will lead our domestic industrial and service network dedicated to the US market,” he added.
U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry was Texas Governor when he first announced the greenfield investment in 2013. Today, he returned to the podium in show of support for the project that has generated more than 600 jobs and more than 1,500 during the construction phase.
“Wherever Tenaris pipes go, jobs will follow. This company is fulfilling the promises it has made,” said Secretary Perry. “It is my hope and my expectation that Tenaris will continue to play a role in America’s energy revolution and manufacturing revival.”
The 1.2 million square foot mill incorporates a high level of automation and cutting edge technologies into its production of seamless pipe. The facility is also the company’s most environmentally efficient mill, seeking LEED certification.
“As a leading supplier of pipes, casing and tubing, Tenaris has played a significant role in the oil and gas surge here in Texas,” said Governor Abbott. “With this $1.8 billion investment, Tenaris has not only built the most technologically advanced pipe manufacturing facility in the world, but they have also created hundreds of new jobs in Texas. I thank Tenaris for all they are doing for the Bay City community and for helping keep Texas the most exceptional economy in the country.”
Tenaris’s mill in Bay City is strategically located near key shale plays and reaffirms the company’s commitment to the U.S. market and domestic manufacturing. The facility is a direct response to the resurgence in the US energy industry and the opportunity to shorten and make the industry more competitive through domestic manufacturing of seamless pipes as a key input for drilling shale wells.
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, who was unable to attend the event, sent a video message congratulating Tenaris for the investment, which he said will have a huge impact on the community. Secretary Ross added the administration will “vigorously defend this investment and others against unfair trade practices, such as dumping and illegal subsidies.”
Tenaris’s new mill has the capacity to produce 600,000 tons of OCTG, annually, and is a critical piece of infrastructure driving the company’s services oriented strategy known as Rig Direct™. The direct-to-customer model synchronizes customers' drilling operations with pipe manufacturing, delivering products and services when needed, as needed. To date, nearly two-thirds of Tenaris’s oil and gas customers in the U.S. are using Rig Direct™.
OCTG produced at the seamless pipe mill in Bay City, Texas, will be shipped directly to customer rig sites or stored at Tenaris service centers in Bay City, Freeport, Midland or Oklahoma.
The Bay City investment was not just in company but in community. Tenaris has invested nearly $1.8 million in education in Matagorda County. This includes nearly 30 scholarships and awards as well as its partnership with the Wharton County Junior College for the manufacturing technology program.
“We believe an industrial project like ours is strong if it grows with the community,” added Rocca. “This is what we have done in every location where we operate and live.”
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