Ipsco Inc. and United Steelworkers Locals 5890 and 6673 have reached a tentative agreement for early renewal of their collective agreements.

The current agreements were scheduled to expire July 31, 2006. The new agreements, which cover approximately 1,000 workers at Ipsco's facilities in Regina, Sask., and Calgary, Alta., will expire July 31, 2011.

Ipsco Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer Raymond Rarey, who led the company bargaining team, said, "I am extremely pleased we were able to negotiate this long term agreement with the USW. I am optimistic that the contracts will be ratified so we can continue to provide well-paid secure jobs to our employees and an uninterrupted supply of quality steel and pipe to our customers. This agreement positions us well to take advantage of significant business opportunities available now and in the future, especially in the large diameter pipe and oil country tubular goods markets."

The agreements are subject to ratification by the membership of Steelworkers' Locals 5890 and 6673. The union bargaining committee will recommend that its membership approve the proposed agreements.

The parties also will have to obtain appropriate legislation from the Saskatchewan Legislature to have an agreement that will be in effect in excess of three years duration. Ipsco and officials of Regina based Local 5890 have pledged to jointly approach the legislature in order to secure timely passage of the necessary legislation.

Ipsco operates steel mills at three locations and pipe mills at six locations in the United States and Canada. As a low-cost North American steel producer, Ipsco has a combined annual steelmaking capacity of 3,500,000 tons. The company's tubular facilities produce a wide range of tubular products including line pipe, oil and gas well casing and tubing, standard pipe and hollow structurals. Steel can also be further processed at Ipsco's five temper leveling and coil processing facilities.

The United Steelworkers represents 280,000 men and women working in every sector of Canada's economy.