The FINANCIAL — Rustavi Steel LLC plans to double its production of pipes in 2014 and substantially expand its export markets. Its steel production in 2014 is set to amount to 130,000 tonnes.
Since 2011 the company has increased its staff force by 30%. Rustavi Steel LLC currently employs over 2,100 workers, the majority of whom are from Rustavi.
The Rustavi Metallurgical Plant is one of the largest industrial enterprises in Georgia. In 2011 the Plant was acquired by Rustavi Steel LLC, and a new management team was appointed. The new team of managers of Rustavi Steel LLC chose a course of the large-scale reconstruction and development of a modern steel-casting enterprise, which produces high quality output.
The Rustavi Metallurgical Plant produces reinforcing bars, seamless pipes, square billets, pig-iron, metal constructions, spare parts and various by-products. The company exports seamless pipes to the US, European and CIS markets for use in the oil & gas and machine building sectors. Steel billets and re-bar are sold in local regional markets and also exported to the Middle East, Africa and South-East Asia.
The management of the Plant view the claim from the owners of Baku Steel Company as an open PR campaign against a strong competitor. The owner of Baku Steel Company Rasim Mamadov has stated that the construction rebar produced by Rustavi Metallurgical Plant and imported into Azerbaijan is of poor quality.
“What’s more, during 2012 and 2013 the Plant did not receive any formal complaints about the quality of its rebar or other products, including from customers in Azerbaijan,” Irakli Abazadze, Commercial Director at Rustavi Steel LLC, told The FINANCIAL.
The company plans to produce 40,000 tonnes of pipes by the end of 2013, up from the 8,000 tonnes of 2012. The Plant produced 2,000 tonnes of pipes in 2011. As for 2014, the company plans to double the results of 2014 and manufacture 80,000 tonnes of pipes.
130,000 tonnes of steel is the projected production amount for 2014 up from the 100,000 tonnes of 2013. Steel production reached 44,000 tonnes in 2011.
“Our production is of equal quality to our competitors abroad. Our advantage is in the lower cost of our product which is due to the low cost of transportation and the fact that we are based in Georgia, while importing the rebar is more expensive. We can supply any number of clients in the shortest possible timeframe and offer more favourable payment terms,” said Abazadze.
Abazadze said that quality is the key issue for them. “Rustavi Metallurgical Plant operates according to international standards and is certified by authorized international organizations. The Plant’s strategy for quality control is oriented towards satisfying its customers’ requirements and establishing trust in the Plant’s products,” he said.
The Plant is certified according to ISO 9001 standards and has API 5L and API 5CT (American Petroleum Institute) certification for the production of seamless pipes. Certification for the European Market, CE (Conformite Europeenne), has also been received from TUV NORD. Also, the Plant has GOST 632, GOST 633 and GOST 8731 certification, for the production of seamless pipes according to Russian standards, and Ukrainian standard DSTU 3760:2006 certification, for the production of rebar.
In addition to the international certification, the products’ high quality is guaranteed by tests carried out in a modern laboratory, including chemical analysis of the steel and mechanical testing of the finished products (rebar and pipes) in a tensile testing machine.
In his words, the high quality of the Rustavi Metallurgical Plant’s production is the result of the following factors: high-quality raw materials; technological processes; control systems; qualified workforce and advanced laboratory.
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