Interpipe increased steel output by 20.3% y/y in the first half of 2023

Interpipe, a global producer of steel pipes and railway products, in January-June 2023 increased steel production by 20.3% compared to the same period in 2022 – up to 344 thousand tons. This is stated in the interim report on the company’s website.

The production of pipe products increased by 1.9% year-on-year compared to January-June 2022 – up to 209,000 tons, and the production of railway products increased by 17.5% year-on-year – up to 47,000 tons.

At the same time, the company notes that in the first half of 2022, capacity was suspended for 2-2.5 months, and does not consider a representative comparison of results with the same period last year.

In the second quarter of 2023, Interpipe produced 160,000 tons of steel (-13% q/q), 105,000 tons of pipes (+0% q/q) and 27,000 tons of railway products (+35% q/q).

Sales of pipes for January-June 2023 amounted to 195 thousand tons, while in the first half of 2022 the company sold 198 thousand tons of products. The main part of the pipes was sent to Europe – 78 thousand tons, another 58 thousand tons of products were shipped to the domestic market.

Sales of railway products for 6 months increased by 4.6% y/y – up to 345,000 tons, in particular, 29,000 tons were sent to European countries, and 10,000 tons – to the domestic market.

During the second quarter, the company increased sales of pipes by 36.6% compared to the previous quarter – up to 112,000 tons, and railway products by 36.8% q/q – up to 26,000 tons.

In the second quarter, Interpipe increased revenue from product sales by 26.2% y/y – up to $289 million. The company’s EBITDA increased by 24% q/q – up to $98 million.

«In the second quarter, the company continued to operate in difficult and unstable conditions amid full-scale Russian invasion. We encountered and successfully solved another challenge for our activities: after the explosion of the Kakhovska HPP, we promptly modernized the equipment and water intake system for the Nikopol Pipe Plant. After significant power outages in the winter, the company’s capacities were loaded by an average of 60-70%,» the company notes.

In addition, Interpipe decided in August to resume major investment projects that had been suspended since the start of the full-scale invasion. In particular, the company plans to complete the construction of a heat treatment complex and a hydraulic press at Interpipe NTZ. Several more projects are planned in the steel and railway divisions.

«Until the end of the year, the company’s management plans to maintain the current level of capacity utilization,» Interpipe summarizes.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2022 Interpipe reduced production of steel by 39% compared to 2021 – to 595,000 tons. Production of railway products decreased by 51% y/y – to 84 thousand tons, and pipes – by 36% y/y, to 393 thousand tons.

Interpipe is an international vertically integrated pipe and wheel company, one of the top 10 global manufacturers of seamless pipes and one of the top 3 manufacturers of wrought wheels.