Ukraine's Interpipe boosts exports of pipes, railway products to U.S., EU, Middle East markets
MOSCOW. Nov 7 (Interfax) - Ukraine's Interpipe company has increased exports of pipes and railway products to the U.S., EU, and Middle East markets as it implements an updated strategy amid uncertainty, Interpipe Director for Economy and Finance Sergei Kuzmenko said at the 21st Forum of Financial Directors of Ukraine, Ukrainian media reported.
He highlighted the importance of long-term development strategy, which has made the company less vulnerable to external factors. This primarily implies an increase in the share of exports to the major markets in the EU, the U.S. and the Middle East.
Since 2015, the company has boosted the share of more sophisticated premium products in its sales from 6% to 19% in 2022. Significant investments have been made in new equipment to produce pipes with gas-tight joints and rail wheels in the passenger segment for the export markets. With the removal of trade barriers by the EU, the company can now enter new niches in the pipe market and offer sophisticated value-added solutions.
"Another important element of the strategy is expediting the transition to sustainable development. Back in 2012, when no one was talking about the green agenda in the EU, we built Interpipe Steel, a cutting-edge electric steelmaking plant. It still complies with the most stringent European environmental. Having reduced CO2 emissions by a factor of 10 and with a low carbon footprint in its products, the company is ready to implement the EU carbon tax, the so-called CBAM. However, we are not stopping, as each of our investment projects has an environmental component," the company said in its statement.
Interpipe is a Ukrainian manufacturer of seamless pipes and rail wheels. The company exports its products to over 80 countries through a network of sales offices in major markets of the Middle East, North America and Europe. In 2022, Interpipe sold 384,000 tonnes of pipes and 87,000 tonnes of railway products. The latter are sold under the KLW brand.
Interpipe has 10,000 employees. In 2022, it transferred UAH 2.8 bln to the budgets of all levels.
The company includes five industrial assets: the Interpipe Nizhnedneprovsky Pipe Rolling Plant, the Interpipe Novomoskovsk Pipe Plant, Interpipe Niko Tube, Dnepropetrovsk Vtormet, and the Dneprostal electric steelmaking plant under the Interpipe Steel brand.
The ultimate owner of Interpipe Limited is Ukrainian businessman Victor Pinchuk and his family members. Pinchuk is a son-in-law of former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma.