Railway product sales volume at Ukraine’s largest pipe
and railway wheel producer Interpipe (INTHOL) was 14.1 kt in October, an 18.8%
m/m decrease, according to the company’s monthly operational report released on
Nov. 19. Pipe sales dropped 33.9% m/m to 40.0 kt, while external billet sales
plunged 80.7% m/m to 1.1 kt.
The m/m decrease in pipe sales in October was due to
several factors. First, OCTG pipe sales plunged 64.2% m/m to 8.3 kt as some
volumes were shifted to November, the report said. Second, line pipe sales
dropped 24.8% m/m to 22.5 kt. However, welded pipe sales surged 54.6% m/m to
7.1 kt amid larger supplies to European and Ukrainian markets.
The m/m drop in railway product sales was driven by
lower sales to the CIS and India.
During 10M21, Interpipe’s pipe sales added 16.6% yoy
to 459.1 kt, driven by a 102.4% yoy surge for OCTG pipes to 135.3 kt. Line pipe
sales added 5.6% yoy to 257.5 kt, while sales of mechanical pipes advanced
37.0% yoy to 20.0 kt. However, welded pipe sales plunged 32.3% yoy to 46.3 kt
in 10M21.
Railway product sales dropped 12.7% yoy to 142.5 kt in
10M21, driven by a 17.3% loss for wheels to 116.9 kt, partially offset by a
25.7% increase for wheelsets to 20.8 kt.
Interpipe boosted its external billet sales 64.2% yoy
in 10M21 to 48.3 kt.
Ukraine’s share of Interpipe’s pipe sales in 10M21
dropped to 19%, or 3pp less than in 2020. At the same time, the share of sales
in the Americas rose 7pp to 18%, the share of CIS countries gained 1pp to 12%,
and MENA’s share was unchanged at 24%. Europe’s share in pipe sales dropped 4pp
to 25%.
The share of Interpipe’s railway product sales in
Ukraine in 10M21 dropped 1pp from 2020 to 13%, while the share of sales to
Europe retreated 2pp to 33%. The share of sales to CIS countries dropped 3pp to
40%. The share of sales in the Americas added 2pp to 5%, and sales in other
countries jumped 5pp to 6%.
Regarding production volumes, Interpipe’s pipe
production dropped 15.1% m/m to 56.3 kt in October, and particularly its
production of OCTG pipes lost 25.3% m/m to 19.7 kt. Its railway product output
slid 5.8% m/m to 14.0 kt in October, while steel production plunged 34.6% m/m
to 63.2 kt.
Dmytro Khoroshun: Interpipe’s production and sales volumes should rebound in November
following the completion of a 12-day regular maintenance of its steelmaking
facilities reported earlier by Interfax-Ukraine.