Interpipe to boost wheels sales to Russia by up to 200 kt

Ukraine’s largest pipe producer, Interpipe (INPIP),
estimates the railcar wheel deficit in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) at
300-500 thousand units, and plans to cover this entire deficit with sales of
its wheels, according to an Aug. 7 report by the news.rambler.ru news site that
cited Russian Railways Partner site’s discussion with a source at Interpipe.

Recall, in July the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC)
suspended its 34.22% anti-dumping duty
for Interpipe wheels until June 1, 2020.

The EEC is the executive body of the EAEU led by
Russia and uniting five former Soviet countries, including Belarus, Kazakhstan,
Armenia and Kyrgyzstan.

Dmytro Khoroshun: We estimate
Interpipe might gain as much as up to USD 150 mln in EBITDA, or 1.25x its USD
120 mln 2017 EBITDA as reported in the media, if it sells
an additional of up to 500 thousand units (200 kt) of wheels to Russia.

Interpipe’s windfall gain will depend a lot on how
the wheel price in Russia will react to the extra volumes: recall, in 5M19 the
average price of Ukraine’s wheel exports into the EAEU jumped 67% yoy to USD 1,790/t.