Marubeni-Itochu to Boost Capacity at OCTG Threading Company in Malaysia
08/30/2012 - Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc. announced it will increase processing capacity at Sobena Offshore Inc., an OCTG threading company operated in Malaysia by Marubeni-Itochu Tubular Asia), a Singapore-based MISI Group steel pipe sales company.
Marubeni-Itochu Steel Inc. announced it will increase processing capacity at Sobena Offshore Inc. Sdn. Bhd. (SOI), an oil country tubular goods (OCTG) threading company operated in Malaysia by Marubeni-Itochu Tubular Asia Pte. Ltd. (MITA), a Singapore-based MISI Group steel pipe sales company. Under this plan, SOI will install two state-of-the-art Japanese-built threading machines engineered for high thread-cutting capacity, at a total cost of approximately US$3 million.
SOI is engaged in local threading operations required under a long-term OCTG supply agreement between MITA and its key customer, Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas), the Malaysian government-run oil company. This agreement, known as CORAL (cost reduction alliance), represents one phase of the TTM (total tubular management) scheme, under which MITA maintains inventory of unprocessed (unthreaded) OCTGs manufactured primarily by JFE Steel Corporation, and SOI threads and ships out the goodsas completed products to meet the demands and delivery schedules of customer firms. This approach has earned stellar marks for significantly reducing customer costs.
The decision to boost SOI’s processing capacity is linked to the strong increase in the volume of orders the company receives, since the development of oil and gas fields in Malaysia remains brisk. SOI is currently operating at full capacity. The plans additionally call for the replacement of outmoded machinery, which will also bolster the company’s capacity to process special screws made by JFE Steel, another product for which demand is predicted to grow.
SOI owns and operates plants at two locations in Malaysia, Kemaman and Labuan. The new high-tech threading machines will be installed at the Kemaman Plant, a facility with a large processing capacity, and arescheduled to go on-stream in mid-2013.
MISI will continue to update and supplement the equipment at SOI in an ongoing quest to ensure a system capable of supplying even higher quality service. The ultimate goal is to firmly address customer needs and contribute to the progress of oil and gas development in Malaysia. In this regard, Malaysia’s oil production currently runs around 573,000 barrels per day, while natural gas production stands at 61.8 billion cubic meters per year. (Both figures are based on British Petroleum statistics for 2011 output.) Petronas is also channeling considerable energies into development and production projects in Iraq, Mozambique, and other overseas locations.
