Pipe and tube
Overview
OCTG (oil country tubular goods) and Line Pipe pricing sits at the intersection of two complex markets – demand from the oil and gas industry and supply from steel markets.
Argus monitors and delivers key OCTG and line pipe price data while analysing supply and demand markets to produce detailed market reports and outlooks on pipe prices and market drivers.
Latest pipe and tube news
Browse the latest market moving news on the global pipe and tube industry.
US September OCTG, line pipe imports may rise
US September OCTG, line pipe imports may rise
Houston, 9 October (Argus) — US imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe products could increase in September. US OCTG imports could be 114,500 metric tonnes (t) in September, which would represent an increase of 15,200t compared to the prior year, according to license data from the US Department of Commerce, which is subject to change. If realized the September OCTG rise would be driven by a potential 19,800t increase from the prior year from South Korea to 60,600t and a 7,700t increase in volumes from Taiwan, up from none in the prior year. Those increases are partially offset by a possible 8,400t decrease in volumes from Canada and a 5,100t decrease from Mexico. If September OCTG import volumes do rise, it will be only the second month since May 2023 that import volumes have increased year over year. Line pipe imports may jump by 19,200t from the prior year to 101,800t. That increase could be driven by a 9,500t increase in line pipe of unspecified diameter from South Korea to 34,700t, and a 3,900t increase in Japanese volumes for line pipe less than or equal to 16in. By Rye Druzchetta US pipe and tube import licenses metric tonnes Product Sep-24 Sep-23 Difference ±% Aug-24 OCTG 114,521 99,310 15,211 15.3% 129,096 Line pipe* 101,777 82,589 19,188 23.2% 84,940 Standard 56,725 56,488 237 0.4% 63,929 Heavy Structural Shapes 57,682 43,364 14,318 33.0% 66,669 US Department of Commerce; September 2024 data is license data, which is subject to change. *Line pipe is all diameters. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US OCTG, line pipe imports fall in July
US OCTG, line pipe imports fall in July
Houston, 29 August (Argus) — Preliminary data from the US Department of Commerce shows that imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe products fell in July. OCTG volumes fell by 88,100 metric tonnes (t) from the prior year, as volumes from Japan dropped by 15,500t, South Korea and Thailand both dropped by 13,500t, and volumes from Vietnam and Mexico fell by 11,300t and 9,300t, respectively. Volumes of line pipe less than or equal to 16in fell by 12,300t, as Italian volumes dropped by 4,500t, Ukraine dropped to zero from 4,400t in the prior year, and Brazilian volumes fell by 3,100t. Standard pipe imports increased by 13,400t on a 7,900t increase from Turkey. Heavy structural shape volumes jumped by 39,700t as Spanish volumes increased by 21,700t from the prior year, and imports from Germany rose by 9,200t. By Rye Druzchetta US pipe and tube imports metric tonnes Product Jul-24 Jul-23 Volume change ±% Jun-24 OCTG 95,792 183,909 -88,117 -47.9% 126,760 Line pipe 69,387 80,875 -11,488 -14.2% 87,976 Standard 66,100 52,716 13,384 25.4% 76,317 Heavy Structural Shapes 107,979 68,253 39,726 58.2% 54,096 US Department of Commerce July 2024 data is preliminary data, which is subject to change. Line pipe is all diameters. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US pipe and tube industry expects pickup in 2025
US pipe and tube industry expects pickup in 2025
Houston, 16 August (Argus) — Tubular goods producers and distributors expect headwinds in the oil and gas industry for the rest of the year, with activity expected to pick up in 2025. The companies, which sell a mix of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe, tempered expectations for the rest of 2024 as oilfield consolidations and slowing drilling activity weigh on the market. Pipe producer Tenaris expects its sales volumes to fall by 10-15pc in the second half of the year from the first half. If realized, second-half shipments would drop by 157,000-208,000 metric tonnes (t) (173,100-229,300 short tons) to 1.77-1.87mn t from the first half. The second-half estimate would be 49,000-149,000t lower than the 1.92mn t sold in the second half of 2023. The Argus US OCTG all-items index for July was flat from the prior month on changes in price inputs. The July index was down by 3pc from June when compared to like price inputs. French-based global tubular producer Vallourec said it expects US shipments to weaken through the rest of the year. Chief executive Philippe Guillemot said forecasters expect US oil production to slow because of the low level of active drilling rigs. The number of active oil and gas drilling rigs was 588 for the week ending 9 August, down by 66 from the year prior, according to oilfield service company Baker Hughes. Pipe and tubular distributors MRC Global and DNOW both see any increases in activity pushing out into 2025. MRC pointed to gas utility destocking and project delays pushing business into next year . Weaker gas prices coupled with lower oil and gas budgets and tentative spending before the November US presidential election will slow third quarter US activity , sequentially, DNOW's chief executive David Cherechinsky said. "The current expectations are that [completions and rig counts] may bottom in the second half of the year or early in 2025," Cherechinsky said on a 7 August earnings call. By Rye Druzin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Canada’s greenwashing bill muzzles oil industry
Canada’s greenwashing bill muzzles oil industry
Calgary, 1 July (Argus) — A Canadian law targeting greenwashing has begun to stamp out much of the oil industry's claims relating to climate pursuits, for better or worse, but environmental policy in general may be at risk as the ruling Liberals show signs of cracking. Companies must now show proof when making representations about climate and emissions targets, according to the law that took effect from 20 June. Any claim "not based on adequate and proper substantiation in accordance with internationally recognised methodology" could result in penalties of up to C$15mn ($11mn), or "triple the value of the benefit derived from the anti-competitive practice". This compelled prominent oil sands producers and carbon capture and storage (CCS) venture Pathways Alliance to delete content from their websites the same day, citing the "significant uncertainty" and the risk of litigation that the new law has brought. Leading oil province Alberta's premier, Danielle Smith, said she expects the new law to have the opposite of its intended effect by stifling "many billions in investments in emissions technologies — the very technologies the world needs". And the political winds might be blowing in her favour as her federal opponent, prime minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal party, struggle to recover from a steady slide in the polls. Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre has been reaping the benefits of Trudeau's fall from grace, as evinced by the surprise by-election win for his Conservative Party in Toronto last week. This is the first time that a Conservative has won this particular seat — in what had been a Liberal stronghold — since 1988, but Trudeau has no plans to step aside ahead of the next general election that will take place on or before 20 October 2025. The federal government hopes oil industry concerns will be offset by other aspects of the new law, which include the passage of important carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) investment tax credits (ITC) that energy companies have been waiting for since they were announced more than three years ago. Eligible expenditures will now receive a refundable ITC of 60pc on capital costs for direct air capture, 50pc on other capture equipment and 37.5pc for money spent on capital relating to carbon transportation, storage or usage. The benefits apply to expenditures between January 2022 and December 2040 but are halved starting in 2031 to encourage investment sooner rather than later. Polarising effect Less than one week later, Shell announced final investment decisions (FIDs) for two projects in Alberta that stand to benefit from these ITCs. The Polaris project will capture up to 650,000 t/yr of CO2 from the company's 114,000 b/d Scotford refinery and chemicals complex. And a joint venture between Shell and Calgary-based ATCO EnPower announced an FID for its Atlas Carbon Storage Hub, which will be connected to Polaris by a 22km pipeline. Both projects are to be operational by the end of 2028. But the CCUS ITC, along with other federal and provincial programmes and regulations, have "created an environment that makes the Polaris investment possible", Shell tells Argus. Pathways says it is pleased the ITCs are now legislated, but that it will scrutinise how they are implemented as it considers moving forward with its massive C$16.5bn CCS project in the heart of Alberta's oil sands region. Pathways includes Canada's six leading oil sands producers, together accounting for 95pc of the province's 3.3mn b/d of oil sands production. That is likely to grow to 4mn b/d within 10 years, the Alberta Energy Regulator says. Capturing carbon will be vital for firms to get to that level while staying under a federally-proposed cap on emissions. By Brett Holmes Alberta tar sands raw production '000m³ 2022 2023 2024 2025 2033 Mineable 257.1 261.9 266.6 271.6 279.5 In situ 270.0 280.2 293.4 309.3 348.8 Total 527.1 542.1 560.0 580.9 628.3 Total mn b/d 3.32 3.41 3.52 3.66 3.95 — Alberta Energy Regulator Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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