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Cover Story

Columns

THE MONTH IN METALS

• Rail accident highlights oil, gas transportation battle

  Transporting oil via rail could present a greater environmental risk than moving it by pipeline, some energy infrastructure executives argue.

CENTER PIECE

• Despite a slow start, optimism remains for aluminum distributors

  Bright spots:  Strong demand is anticipated from commercial and private aerospace, chemical, petrochemical and value-added fabrication.

END-USER SPOTLIGHT

• Commercial airliner demand keeps aerospace soaring

  Despite a somewhat discouraging trend in the defense sector, global demand and investment are expected to maintain a profitable market climate.

FULL OF SCRAP

• Economy at forefront of discussions at ISRI conference

  North American scrap iron and steel dealers, brokers and buyers are not overly optimistic, at least through spring and summer this year.

PARTING SHOTS

• Crony capitalism and the public sector ‘privilege’

  Politicians argue that they are creating jobs, but taking sides in the market may well eliminate jobs elsewhere in the steel industry.

From the Editor

AMM COMMENT

• Find the energy to make your case, honestly

  It’s not news, I suppose, to point out that energy is a contentious and controversial subject in America these days. After all, when is it not?

Features

• Orbite Aluminae sees red mud become red gold

  Red mud, a caustic byproduct of traditional aluminum production, could go from being a drag on the bottom line to a valuable commodity if two companies and their new process have their way.

• AMM Aluminum Summit preview

  AMM ’s third annual Aluminum Summit in June will offer analysts and executives from every step along the supply chain an opportunity to collaborate, address the challenges facing the industry, and seize the opportunities that domestic and global markets have to offer.

SPECIAL SECTION: OCTG & ENERGY REPORT

• Pipemakers optimistic as energy market stabilizes

  Improvements in natural gas prices and natural gas drilling activity are still the leading factors expected to drive OCTG demand, which could improve in the near term as declining gas drill rig numbers have stabilized while oil drilling continues to increase.

SPECIAL SECTION: OCTG & ENERGY REPORT

• Drilling mud key for OCTG in corrosion intensive extraction

  The use of drilling mud—which will only increase with the spread of fracking and other oil and natural gas extraction practices—increases corrosion stress on OCTG products, requiring new approaches in the manufacturing and deployment of steel goods.

SPECIAL SECTION: OCTG & ENERGY REPORT

• Keystone XL inches closer to reality: TransCanada

  TransCanada, the would-be builder of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, said it is ready to go ahead with the project as soon as governmental issues are resolved—a move that could come sooner rather than later as the US State Department completes its studies on the environmental effects of the proposed construction.

SPECIAL SECTION: OCTG & ENERGY REPORT

• Shale gas boom puts seamless pipe on center stage

  The shale gas boom of recent years has led to greater demand for seamless pipe, and a number of producers are shifting gears or expanding capacity to help meet the growing need created by fracking, horizontal drilling and other strategies to reach the energy reserves.

SPECIAL SECTION: OCTG & ENERGY REPORT

• A look back to see what’s next for OCTG

  At the start of the new century, there were few signs that the oil country tubular goods (OCTG) market was about to do something historic. But a remarkable growth cycle started about a decade ago, fueled by technological innovation and increased energy demand.

SPECIAL SECTION: OCTG & ENERGY REPORT

• Overcapacity fears loom large for OCTG market

  Fears of potential overcapacity are haunting the OCTG sector, as concerns about imported products and new domestic manufacturing projects coming online threaten to swamp what many see as an already overcompetitive fight for a market that may reach its limits.