Tenaris executives and employees, as well as stakeholders and elected officials, gathered Sept. 27 to welcome the company’s recent announcement that a culmination of $150 million has been invested in Sault Ste. Marie since 2019 to transform its industrial footprint.

The goal for Tenaris in this endeavour is to create a pipe manufacturing hub in the Sault and centralize its operations under one roof. HFW Pipe

Near the end of 2020, Tenaris announced $81 million to establish a new electric resistance weld (ERW) pipe manufacturing line in the Sault.

Since then, the company has invested millions more into transforming and expanding that project.

According to a press release issued by Tenaris, the investments include a new premium threading line that provides a full range of pipe connection threads, as well as a new ERW (electric resistance welded) pipe manufacturing line which extends Tenaris’ product offer of welded pipe products with new steel grades, extended sizes, and premium connections.

Safety, automation, and digitalization improvements were also integrated into the existing operations.

Tenaris chairman and CEO Paolo Rocca said he’s incredibly appreciative of the support they’ve received to help make this transformation possible.

“Our story in Canada has been one of commitment and continued growth, and today we are celebrating transformative investments in the latest chapter of what has been a journey that dates back two decades,” he says. “We have enhanced our portfolio of made-in-Canada solutions to better serve domestic customers, providing an unparalleled security of supply and product diversity with a robust industrial system that is strengthened by our global capabilities.”

Rocca said the investments were made possible thanks to the help from the federal, provincial, and municipal levels of government, as well as the Strategic Innovation Fund, FedNor, the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund, the city of Sault Ste. Marie, and the SSM Economic Development Corporation.

Steel En Pipe Tenaris has hired over 300 employees since October of 2020, bringing their staffing total to over 600 workers.