Benteler Steel/Tube Selects Louisiana for $900 Million U.S. Expansion

The new hot rolling tube mill in Caddo strategically strengthens its position in the North American oil country tubular goods market, which is expected to increase through a renewed focus by the U.S. government to reduce energy imports and increase domestic production capacities.

At a news conference with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, Benteler Steel/Tube GmbH (Paderborn, Germany) recently announced it will build a new hot rolling tube mill in Caddo, strengthening the company’s position in the North American oil country tubular goods (OCTG) market.

The facility – a total investment of nearly $900 million – will be Benteler Steel/Tube’s first U.S. production facility and will create more than 1,000 construction jobs, an estimated 675 full time jobs when at full capacity, and numerous indirect jobs with suppliers and service providers to the plant.

“We are pleased to announce that Northwestern Louisiana will be home to the first U.S. production facility for Benteler Steel/Tube,” said Matthias Jaeger, the president and chief executive officer of Benteler Steel/Tube GmbH. “With the growing demand for high-quality steel tubes for exploratory drilling in the U.S. and Louisiana’s proximity and access to energy customers, Benteler Steel/Tube’s Caddo Parish plant is poised to play an important role in meeting U.S. domestic energy needs.”

The decision to site and construct a production site in the U.S. is an important element of Benteler Steel/Tube’s global business growth strategy. Currently, more than 25 percent of the company’s products flow into North America. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the U.S. is expected to increase crude oil and natural gas consumption over the next 25 years. With a renewed focus by the U.S. government to reduce energy imports and increase domestic production capacities, demand for these products in the U.S. is expected to increase.

Benteler Steel/Tube is a specialist in the manufacturing and processing of seamless hot-rolled steel tubes and seamless cold-drawn precision steel tubes, serving international customers in the automotive, OCTG/line pipe, heat transfer, hydraulics/precision engineering, and construction sectors. Exploratory drilling requires high-quality steel tubes that can withstand immense stresses and Benteler’s product portfolio includes a range of steel tubes that meet the extreme requirements in energy exploration.

A memorandum of understanding has been agreed upon between Benteler, the State of Louisiana, Louisiana Economic Development, the North Louisiana Economic Partnership, The Port—Caddo-Bossier, The Red River Waterway Commission and other key community partners in Caddo Parish.

Groundbreaking on the new facility is scheduled for the spring of 2013 and completion is planned for the second half of 2015. In the initial phase, Benteler will build a hot rolling tube mill with new and sophisticated manufacturing technology along with several finishing lines for the production of seamless tube solutions.

Benteler Steel/Tube is a business unit of the global Benteler Group (Salzburg, Austria). Founded in 1876, the company is proud of its more than 135-year history of success. The Benteler Group employs a total workforce of 30,000 employees at 170 locations in 38 countries. There are four Benteler Steel/Tube sales offices located in North America, including headquarters in Houston, TX. www.benteler.com