Baku, Azerbaijan, May 31
By Azad Hasanli - Trend:
ArcelorMittal, the largest producer of steel pipes in the world, intends to start supplying its products to Azerbaijan, the company's regional representative Dias Kozhakhmetov told Trend on the sidelines of the International Caspian Oil & Gas Exhibition in Baku.
"Currently we are studying the possibilities of cooperation with Azerbaijani companies. In particular, here in Baku, we plan to hold talks with representatives of SOCAR," he said.
He added that the company plans to offer cooperation on specific projects.
Kozhakhmetov noted that the economy of Azerbaijan is actively developing and ArcelorMittal wants to enter the local market and take its share in it.
"We know that Azerbaijan already has its own manufacturer of steel pipes - the Baku Steel Company, but we are not competitors to that company, as it produces pipes with a diameter of up to 530 millimeters, and the diameter of our pipes begins from 530 millimeters," the ArcelorMittal regional representative said.
ArcelorMittal can supply products to Azerbaijan through its company in Aktau, Kazakhstan, Kozhakhmetov said.
"ArcelorMittal Aktau is located in the territory of the [Aktau] port, so we can freely supply our pipes to Azerbaijan by sea. Starting with Azerbaijan, we want to cover the entire Caspian region," he added.
ArcelorMittal was formed in 2006 as a result of the merger of two companies - Arcelor and Mittal Steel. The company's enterprise in Aktau supplies its products to Uzbekistan and Ukraine. The capacity of the plant is 60,000 tons of steel pipes per year.
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