On September 14, Romanian pipe manufacturer Liberty Tubular Products Galai resumed production at its welded pipe plant after several months of very limited operation.
The design capacity of the enterprise is about 50,000 tons per year. The plant produces welded pipes from thick-rolled products. The company reported that the current volume of orders provides a load of about two months. During this period, short stops are possible, since part of the required thick sheet will not be delivered in a single batch, but in stages.
Earlier, on February 16, the plant was already launched to fulfill orders totaling about 1,400 tons, and then it was assumed that new contracts would follow soon. However, after that, production remained limited: there were not enough orders, and the company continued to experience financial difficulties and liquidity shortages. Liberty Tubular Products is currently in the process of preventive restructuring, and wage arrears to the company's employees are being paid through the Romanian Payroll Guarantee Fund.
Liberty Tubular Products operates on the same industrial site as Liberty Gala, and traditionally uses rolled steel products produced at the steel mill, which makes the two industries closely related. Despite the logistical difficulties and high energy costs, the company continues to prepare new supplies of slabs. The first train with customer-owned slabs is already being loaded in Constance for shipment to Galac, as well as technical and commercial negotiations on additional supplies. The resumption of pipe production and the discussion of new orders are expected to help the company maintain a more stable load in the coming months.
