OREANDA-NEWS. TMK (LSE: TMKS), a leading global manufacturer and supplier of steel pipes for the oil and gas industry, announces its operational results for the first half of 2013.
2Q 2013 and 1H 2013 Highlights
•  TMK shipped a total of 2,140 thousand  tonnes of steel pipe to  customers in the first half of 2013, up 2% year-on-year. Shipments in  the second quarter of 2013 also grew by 2% quarter-on-quarter.
•  In the first half of 2013, seamless pipe shipments fell by 1% year-on-year to 1,244 thousand tonnes. Shipments in the second quarter of  2013 also fell by 1% quarter-on-quarter to 619 thousand tonnes.
•  Welded pipe shipments rose by 6% year-on-year, reaching  896 thousand tonnes in the first half of 2013 driven, among other  factors, by a rising demand for large diameter pipe (LDP) and line pipe  from Russian consumers. Second quarter shipments were up by 7% compared to the first quarter of 2013.
•  Total shipments of OCTG, TMK’s core product, increased by 1% year-on-year and in the second quarter were up by 7% compared to the  previous quarter.
•  Shipments of premium connections rose to 370 thousand joints for the  first half of 2013, up 22% year-on-year and 26% quarter-on-quarter. 2Q 2013 and 1H 2013 Market Overview and Performance by Division Russian Division
In January–June 2013,  TMK’s Russian division shipped 1,508 thousand  tonnes of pipes,  up 4% year-on-year.  In the second quarter of 2013,  shipments remained almost flat at 753 thousand tonnes compared to the  previous quarter.
LDP shipments rose by 11% year-on-year and 4% quarter-on-quarter, driven  by both TMK’s involvement in supplies for the construction of the Russian  onshore section of the South Stream pipeline and by growing shipments to  CIS countries.
Due to increasing oilfield-to-storage transportation demands in Russia, in the  first half of 2013, TMK’s Russian division increased shipments of seamless  and welded line pipe by 7% and 37% year-on-year, respectively, with no  substantial year-on-year or quarter-on-quarter change in seamless OCTG  shipments.
Shipments in the welded and seamless industrial pipe segments suffered a  general year-on-year decline due to a shrinking market but in the second  quarter of 2013 were up by 22% and 11% quarter-on-quarter, respectively,  driven by a reviving demand from the machine building and construction  industries.
American Division
In the first half of 2013, shipments by the American division decreased by  3% year-on-year to 554 thousand tonnes.
In the second quarter of 2013,  shipments improved by 11% quarter-on-quarter, driven by targeted market sales of line pipe and OCTG.
Despite stronger commodity prices, the Baker Hughes US rig count in the  first half of 2013 compared to the second half of 2012 decreased by 5% to  an average of 1,760 while year-over-year the US rig count was down 11%  from an average of 1,981 for the first half of 2012. In the first half of 2013,  the oil rig count averaged 77% of the total US rig count versus 66% in the  first half of 2012. In the second half of 2013 the natural gas rig count is  expected to decline further due to seasonal influences. The trend of rigs  drilling horizontally and directionally will, however, support OCTG  consumption.
Market import volumes remain a high percentage of supply in the U.S. In  July, TMK IPSCO and eight other domestic producers filed a petition for the  imposition of anti-dumping and countervailing duties against oil country  tubular goods from nine countries.   However, due to the length of the  investigation  process,  import supply  in the second half  of 2013 is  not expected to be significantly affected by the submitted petition.
European Division
Throughout 2013, the European market environment was deteriorating  month by month, becoming ever more critical at the end of the second  quarter. The shrinking number of active projects coupled with investor  pessimism resulted in lower consumption of tubular goods. This spring saw  no demand revival,  historically driven by the construction business  resumption, since the construction industry was hit worst of all by a dramatic  decline in private and public investments in infrastructure and other projects.
Over the recent months, this environment has been pressing prices for  tubular goods further downward.
Against this challenging economic environment, TMK’s European division  shipped 78 thousand tonnes of pipe in the first half of 2013, down 4% year-on-year. Shipments in the second quarter of 2013 fell by 5% quarter-on-quarter to 38 thousand tonnes.
Premium Segment
In the first half of 2013, overall demand for TMK’s premium connections  continued to grow.  TMK shipped a total of 370 thousand premium  connections in the first half of 2013, up 22% year-on-year. In the second  quarter of 2013, shipments of premium connections grew by 26% quarter-on-quarter.
Expanding its services capabilities,  in April 2013  TMK acquired a  100% interest in pipe services and precision manufacturing assets located  north-east of Houston with an annual production capacity of more than  700 thousand joints of threaded pipe and around 250 thousand couplings. In  addition, the facility provides pipe inspection services and manufactures  down-hole tools and accessories for a wide range of oil and gas  applications.
Outlook
The Company confirms the earlier announced expectations that the Russian  division will continue to see a strong demand for OCTG and line pipe in  2013 as Russian oil and gas players fulfill their production plans. The LDP  segment is expected to remain flat in the second half of 2013.
The Company maintains its positive long-term U.S. market outlook. TMK  expects that the challenging pricing environment, which is likely to have a significant influence on TMK IPSCO’s financial results in the first half of  2013, will be gradually improving in 2013 by the year end.
The Company believes that neither noticeable upturn nor stabilization in the  European market will be seen before the end of the third quarter of 2013.
In general, the Company confirms its cautiously positive outlook for the  current year and expects 2013 shipments to be at least the same as in 2012.