(by Paul Vivian and Rick Preckel, www.prestonpipe.com) Market Monitor Projects: According to the Simdex Future Pipeline Projects Worldwide Guide, the number of projects announced over the course of the last 12 months were 20% fewer than for the same period in 2017. Mileage, however, is a different story. 2018 miles were double the mileage tabulated for the 12 month period ended November of 2017.
The shift in average project length is a product of debottlenecking and the movement of oil to new ‘hubs’ which is the result of congestion or ease of export. For detailed information about ongoing and upcoming pipeline projects, subscribe to the Simdex Future Pipeline Projects Worldwide Guide. Small diameter: We wanted to provide an update on how the Section 232 has affected small diameter line pipe. Overall, shipments in the market are up by about 60k tons through November and imports are down by about 115k tons. This has resulted in a market share shift in favor of the domestic producers of about six percentage points. On the import side, Korea, Mexico, UK, and others volumes are down by about 200k tons (Korea is 160k) while Brazil, Canada, Germany, and others have partially offset those declines. Import pricing a year ago was $762/ton – almost $200/ton lower than the most recent month. A quick look at the chart above suggests that small diameter tons per rig are slipping after experiencing strong growth since about mid-2013. Part of this trend change is related to a more mature oil infrastructure situation and the relative geographic stability of the oil and gas production base. Import Supply: October imports were 195,649 tons which is about 25,000 tons over the licenses. This is followed by a growing license month in November of 207,953 tons. The December projection with 12 0f 20 days reporting is again up 251,484 tons. The top item for the month of October is Carbon ERW over 24”, at 35,869 tons. The landed price was $982/ton. LOD project activity.
