Indian OCTG failed in Marcellus, firms allege

Dec 08, 2010 | 01:00 PM |

Drilling company CNX Gas Co. LLC and distributor Fairmont Supply Co. have accused Indian pipe maker ISMT Ltd. of supplying them with faulty products that left a Marcellus Shale well in "useless" condition.

In a complaint filed in federal court in Pittsburgh, the two Canonsburg, Pa.-based companies allege the Indian pipe maker supplied them with oil country tubular goods (OCTG) that failed in the field.

Millions of dollars could be at stake in the case, which the plaintiffs want to argue before a jury, according to court documents.

CNX Gas, which owns Marcellus Shale gas interests in Pennsylvania, purchased steel pipe from Fairmont Supply, according to the complaint. Fairmont sourced the pipe for CNX from a new ISMT mill in Mumbai, India, through Cressman Tubular Products Corp., Addison, Texas; ThyssenKrupp Materials NA (TK Materials), Southfield, Mich.; and Germany's ThyssenKrupp Mannex GmbH (TK Mannex).

The Marcellus Shale stretches from Virginia to New York and underlies much of Pennsylvania.

TK Materials was the importer of record for the deal and TK Mannex appears to have played a key role in convincing Fairmont to buy from ISMT, according to the complaint.....