Basque region, Spain-based seamless stainless steel pipe producer Tubacex has announced that, despite the fact that it forecasts a complicated market environment for the current year, dominated by the decline in raw material prices and delays in the implementation of projects linked to the oil and gas sector, it will continue with key strategic investments and that corrective measures will continue to be developed to optimize short-term results, ensuring medium and long-term growth. These measures include cost reductions, operational improvements at production plants, diversification towards premium products, markets and sectors with growth potential and the reduction of financial costs.
According to the company, its sales on the Asian continent have increased by 64 percent in the last two years, representing 59 percent of its sales in 2015, establishing itself as the market with the highest worldwide growth potential and one of the main axes for the development of the company's commercial strategy. In this regard, to complete its range of products and improve its range of products offered in the oil and gas sector, the company has signed a letter of intent for creation of a joint venture with the Japanese company Awaji, for manufacturing special stainless steel components in Awaji's Thailand factory. Tubacex stated that this is a low-key deal with a target turnover of €20-25 million over three years, which will allow it to gain in competitiveness in certain market segments, generating productive synergies in our Asia plants.