OREANDA-NEWS. Vyksa Steel Works (VSW, Nizhni Novgorod Region), part of United Metallurgical Company (OMK), has manufactured a trial batch of LDP for subsea pipelines rated for the working pressure of 220 atm in accordance with the DNV-OS-F101 standard of Norway-based Det Norske Veritas and the specification of the Nord Stream project.

The batch included more than 500 tonnes of 1,220-mm pipes with wall thicknesses of 33 mm and 36 mm (steel grade: SAWL 485 (X70)).

The trial batch was produced in the presence of representatives of Nord Stream AG, the operator of the Nord Stream (North European Gas Pipeline) Construction Project, who familiarized themselves with the engineering and manufacturing process.

In April, VSW, under the supervision of DNV specialists, conducted laboratory mechanical tests of the pipes, with the test report submitted to Nord Stream AG. The tests showed that the pipes were in full compliance with the Nord Stream project specification and DNV-OS-F101.

Based on the test results, OMK was given the Statement of Compliance of its production technology to DNV-OS-F101. The equipment and technical knowledge of VSW specialists were highly evaluated by the experts of the project operator and DNV. O

MK has become Russia's and the CIS's first qualified producer of pipes according to DNV-OS-F101 designed for subsea pipeline systems.

At present, OMK is the key supplier of large-diameter pipes for the construction of the onshore sections of the Nord Stream project. Since the beginning of its participation in the project, VSW has produced and supplied more than 250,000 tonnes of LDP. OMK is participating in the bidding for the supply of pipes for the subsea sections of the Nord Stream project. If successful, OMK's track record for participation in international projects will include another milestone. Earlier, the Company was a preferred bidder for the supply of its pipes to Shell's and ExxonMobil's Sakhalin 1 and Sakhalin 2 projects, for which OMK was the only Russian supplier of main pipes. This year, VSW plans to additionally invest 1.4 million rubles in the modernization of its 1,420-mm pipe production line. A total of 4.98 million rubles has been invested in the upgrading of the LDP facilities.

United Metallurgical Company (OMK) is one of Russia's largest producers of pipes, railroad wheels, and other metal products for energy, transport, and industrial companies. OMK comprises six largest enterprises in the metallurgical sector. The OMK Pipe-Rolling Division comprises Vyksa Steel Works (Nizhni Novgorod Region), Almetyevsk Pipe Plant (Republic of Tatarstan), and Trubodetal (Chelyabinsk Region); the OMK Steel Works Division comprises Chusovoy Steel Works and Gubakha Coke (Perm Territory), and Shchelkovo Steel Works (Moscow Region). In 2006, OMK products accounted for 18,8% of pipes consumed in Russia, including 35,7% of large diameter pipes, over 63% of railroad wheels, and more than 70% of automobile springs. In 2006, the OMK enterprises produced 1.65 million tonnes of pipes of various sizes, over 400 thousand tonnes of rolled products, and 805 thousand railroad wheels. In 2006, OMK's sales reached about $3 billion. The main consumers of OMK products include such leading Russian and foreign companies as Gazprom, Russian Railways, LUKOIL, Transneft, Surgutneftegas, Rosneft, TNK-BP, Exxon