October 4, 2013. Pipe Metallurgical Company (TMK) delivered a set of large-diameter pipes for the large-scale international project called Central Asia-China; this was done in full compliance with the contract. The contract also covered for TMK shipping over 100,000 tons of longitudinal welded tubes (diameter 1,219mm, wall width 17.5mm, a three-layer outer polyethylene coating and an internal coating) between January and September 2013. The produce was manufactured by Volzhsky Pipe Plant in accordance with the API Spec 5L standard. The pipes were delivered to Kazakhstan and will be used for building the third extension to the main pipeline.

The Central Asia –China pipeline connects large natural gas deposits in Central Asia with China’s natural gas supply system. The pipeline comprises two links from Samandepe deposit in Turkmenistan through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. The total length is more than 7,000km, including 188 km in Turkmenistan, 560 km in Uzbekistan, 1,300km in Kazakhstan, and 5,000km in China. The third extension was embarked upon in 2012; this link will go through Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan and is expected to increase the amount of Central Asian natural gas that gets transited to China.

‘Central Asia’s oil and gas resources are in the limelight of the global energy market and attract operators from many countries. TMK’s presence in this strategically important region and its successful participation in projects as big as a pipeline in China confirms the company’s high status as a manufacturer of pipe produce that meets the global quality standards,’ says TMK Director-General Alexander Shiryaev.