Hartlepool pipe mill extends global reach with milestone Saudi contract

Liberty Pipes Hartlepool, part of Sanjeev Gupta’s GFG Alliance, has secured a milestone contract to manufacture more than 16 kilometres of heavy-duty steel pipe for a multi-billion-dollar offshore Saudi Arabian oil and gas development.

The order to supply SAWL Linepipe for a major expansion of the Saudi Aramco Marjan field is the first major contract the Hartlepool mills have won from the Middle Eastern Kingdom since being acquired by Liberty almost two years ago.

Since then the plant has fulfilled major orders from North Sea oil and gas producers and a range of American customers but the latest contract represents a breakthrough in efforts to establish a presence in the world’s largest oil and gas producing region.

Saudi Aramco is the world’s biggest oil and gas company by revenue and Liberty is hopeful the prestigious Marjan contract will lead to further opportunities in Saudi Arabia and the wider Gulf region. Saudi Aramco is planning to boost the Marjan and Berri fields’ production capacity by 550,000 barrels per day of crude oil and 2.5 billion standard cubic feet a day of gas.

Liberty in conjunction with Sumitomo Corporation Middle East FZE, will supply the Marjan project with more than 16 kilometres of Submerged Arc Welded Linepipe (SAWL) from its 42-inch UOE mill, one of two mills it operates at Hartlepool. The offshore Linepipe, suitable for highly-resilient ‘sour service’ application, is due for delivery in the final quarter of 2019.

Martyn Curnow, Commercial Director, Liberty Pipes Hartlepool commented: “Our facility has a proven global track record of managing projects with stringent technical requirements.  The team, led by Steve Brooke in the UK and Saad Jakani in the United Arab Emirates, worked tirelessly with the client to ensure that the demanding specification was fully understood and delivered a robust technical proposal which we are sure was a key consideration in the evaluation and acceptance of our offer.” 

“It is extremely pleasing to re-establish the Hartlepool mill as a supplier in the region following a significant period of absence. This success is testament to the hard work and commitment shown by our employees in all areas of the business.”

Masaki Nakagaki, General Manager of Tubular Products Unit, Sumitomo Corporation Middle East FZE said: “Sumitomo Corporation Middle East has a strong presence in Middle East for supply of Tubular products and this recent success is testimony of our efforts to contribute to growth of the Oil & Gas sector in the region with partners like Liberty Pipes Hartlepool.”

Sanjeev Gupta, executive chairman of the GFG Alliance, said: “We’re delighted to have secured this very important order. Given that we are operating in very tough market conditions, the award of this contract further underlines the quality of the work at Hartlepool and the team’s ability to meet the highest global standards.”