SeAH Changwon Special Steel Establishes Joint Venture with Aramco... Full-Scale Entry into Middle East Market

Stainless steel non-grain steel pipe products from SeAH Changwon Special Steel. Photo by SeAH Changwon Special Steel

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghoon Jeong] SeAH Changwon Special Steel Co., Ltd. is intensifying its push into the Middle Eastern market by completing the establishment of the joint venture 'SeAH Gulf Special Steel Industries (SGSI),' co-invested with Saudi Aramco.

SeAH Changwon Special Steel announced on the 8th that it has finalized the establishment of the joint venture after going through corporate merger notifications and detailed consultations in six global countries including Korea, the EU (European Union), Saudi Arabia, and China. Previously, in September last year, the company signed a joint investment contract worth $230 million (approximately 290 billion KRW) with the 'Saudi Industrial Investment Company,' a major shareholder of Aramco, to establish a stainless seamless steel pipe and tube factory in Saudi Arabia.

SGSI is Saudi Arabia's first stainless seamless steel pipe and tube factory located within the new city 'King Salman Energy Park (SPARK),' which Aramco is developing as an international hub for the energy industry in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia. On a site of 165,289㎡ (approximately 50,000 pyeong), it is expected to produce high value-added stainless seamless steel pipe and tube products with an annual capacity of 17,000 tons.

Construction is scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of this year, aiming for commercial production in the first half of 2025. SGSI plans to serve as a hub for targeting not only Saudi Arabia but also the Middle Eastern market, leveraging its geographical advantage adjacent to large-scale national project areas of the Saudi government and the extensive steel product portfolio held by the SeAH Group.

Meanwhile, a total of four products, including stainless precision pipes from CTC, a subsidiary of SeAH Changwon Special Steel, and stainless welded pipes from Inoxtech, a subsidiary of SeAH Steel Holdings Co., Ltd., have also obtained new vendor certification from Aramco, with four companies under the SeAH Group recognized for quality by Aramco.

A representative from SeAH Changwon Special Steel stated, "With the completion of the joint venture 'SGSI' with Aramco, investment in the local stainless seamless steel pipe and tube factory in Saudi Arabia will be fully underway," adding, "We plan to intensify our push into the Middle Eastern market through a solid partnership with Aramco, including the acquisition of new vendor certifications for group subsidiaries."