Nov. 30, 2023

Nippon Steel Corporation
Sumitomo Corporation

On October 2, in Brunei Darussalam (hereinafter referred to as "Brunei"), Nippon Steel Corporation (hereinafter referred to as Nippon Steel) and Sumitomo Corporation agreed to enter into a revised contract with Brunei Shell　Petroleum Company Sendirian Berhad (hereinafter referred to as BSP) to extend the contract period for 10 years regarding the supply of oil country tubular goods, including local threading and supply chain management service.

For more than 50 years, Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Corporation have been delivering seamless oil country tubular goods to BSP, a major producer of crude oil and natural gas in Brunei. Since 2014, based on a contract for the supply of oil country tubular goods including local oil country tubular goods threading and supply chain services, we have established VAM^® BRN SDN BHD (hereinafter referred to as “VAM^® BRN”, 60% owned by Nippon Steel, 30% owned by Sumitomo Corporation, 10% owned by Vallourec Tubes SAS), an advanced oil country tubular goods threading facility, with the aim of contributing to local employment in Brunei and supplying oil country tubular goods locally. Sumitomo Corporation has established SC Tubular Solutions (B) Sdn Bhd (hereinafter referred to as "SCTSB"), a supply chain management company that handles inventory management, on the same site of VAM^® BRN, and we have contributed to create local jobs in Brunei and the just-in-time supply service of oil country tubular goods with BSP.

NSC and Sumitomo Corporation believes this contract extension was realized because of our total solutions with high-quality product delivery and just in time supply chain management.

Natural gas and LNG are expected to play an important role in realizing a carbon-neutral society as transition energy. Also, due to the recent rise in geopolitical risks, the importance of energy security has been reaffirmed on a global basis. Through this project, Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Corporation will contribute to the development of Brunei economy and a stable energy supply to Japan and other Asian countries.

(*1) “VAM^®”: A brand name for a special connection for seamless pipes jointly developed by Nippon Steel and Vallourec.

[Overview of VAM^® BRN]

• Company Name:    VAM^® BRN SDN BHD
  
• location:    Brunei Muara District Bandar Seri Begawan
  
• employee:    103 people (as of the end of September 2023)
• Main equipment:    Small diameter threading line, Medium diameter threading line
• Production capacity:    5,500 tons per year
• Start of commercial operation:    December 2016
  

 

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