(Photo courtesy of Tenaris)

(Koppel, Pa.) Steel production is now underway at Tenaris’s Koppel Steel Shop. The shop in is Tenaris’s first melt shop in the United States that will soon supply steel bars for its seamless pipe mills in the U.S. and Canada.

The steel shop in Koppel was part of the company’s strategic acquisition of IPSCO in 2020 and has now started producing steel bars following a year-long investment of more than $15 Million in upgrades to integrate the facility into Tenaris’ global network of steel mills.

The investments included expansion of the mill’s capabilities to produce a wider range of steel bars.

Luca Zanotti, Tenaris US President said via release:  “With Koppel as our source of local supply for steel bars, our extensive footprint of mills and service centers, our direct, mill-to-well Rig Direct® model, we have even greater flexibility to support our customers and are further optimizing the entire value chain, enhancing our response to the ongoing market forces.”

As part of the ramp-up of the steel shop, testing of the facility will continue over the following months to steady production and streamline processes, and align with the company’s integrated high standards for quality, health, safety, and environment. The Koppel facility is expected to be fully commissioned by end of summer.