Steel pipe maker PSL Ltd has said it will commission its second pipe mill having a capacity of 75,000 million tonnes a year at Sharjah in May as the company is anticipating strong demand from the West Asian countries in the coming months.
This would take its total pipe production capacity to 1,50,000 mt per year in West Asia through its subsidiary PSL FZE, Hamriyah.
“We are doubling the capacity by 75,000 mt at Sharjah and it will be commissioned in May,” the company Managing Director, Mr Ashok Punj, told PTI.
He added his company has bid for water transmission pipeline projects worth about $200 million in the region and “definitely some would mature for us due to increasing expenditure on social infrastructure’’.
Mr Punj further said due to political turmoil witnessed by the West Asian countries in recent times, several governments have accelerated the decision-making process and investments on social infrastructure like providing drinking water.
“Heightened sensitivity in social infrastructure would see more water pipelines in the region, as they are desert countries and that will certainly benefit our business,” he said, adding that “decisions, which used to take over six months, are getting accelerated now’’.
Besides its business in West Asian countries, the company is also bullish on Indian markets, where large number of water and oil and gas pipelines’ projects are coming up.
“We are bullish on both the segments (water and oil and gas). Several projects of GAIL and Gujarat State Petronet Ltd (GSPL) are coming up, while demand for water transmission pipes is expected to go up post Assembly elections in states like Tamil Nadu,” Mr Punj said.
PSL is eyeing to increase its order book to over Rs 3,000 crore from the current levels of about Rs 1,700 crore in about 3-4 months, he said, adding that his company will also bid to supply pipes for Kochi-Bangalore pipeline project of GAIL which is due next week.
Meanwhile, the company shares were trading today at Rs 74.20 on the Bombay Stock Exchange in the late afternoon trade, up 1.44 per cent from the previous close.