Steel Pipe Industry of Indonesia (ISSP) Increases Production by Up to 20% This Year

April 22, 2024, 01.13 AM | Reporter: Sabrina Rhamadanty

ILUSTRASI. A worker walks past a pile of steel pipe products at the yard of Youfa steel pipe plant in Tangshan in China's Hebei Province in this November 3, 2015 file picture. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/Files

LISTED COMPANY - JAKARTA. By 2024, PT Steel Pipe Industry of Indonesia Tbk (ISSP) is aiming for a production quantity increase of 10% to 20%.

Johannes W. Edward, Corporate Secretary of Steel Pipe Industry of Indonesia, stated that despite a decrease in production volume in the first quarter of this year, the company, often referred to as Spindo, remains optimistic about catching up in the next three quarters.

"Of course, production volume has decreased. This was highly anticipated due to the presidential election and the numerous joint holidays in the first quarter. However, we remain generally optimistic that we can catch up in the next quarter," Johannes revealed to Kontan.co.id on Saturday, (21/04).

ISSP is targeting an export volume of 5,000 tons per month throughout 2024. With the price of raw materials (coal and iron ore) still well maintained, ISSP is also optimistic that steel prices will remain stable this year.

Regarding expansion, Johannes stated that the company continues to construct warehouses in Gresik as part of the development of unit 7 phase 1 through capital expenditure (capex) of around Rp 200 billion in 2024, with the remainder used for maintenance.

"The expansion of unit 7 has begun. However, it will not be fully operational until 2026," he revealed.

On the subject of raw materials, he stated that the current composition of imported raw materials is approximately 60%, with the remaining 40% being supplied locally.

When asked whether the company has experienced a cost increase following the recent strengthening of the Dollar against the Rupiah, Johannes responded that it indeed has an impact on cost, but he did not elaborate on the cost increase in detail.

"Of course, this affects the price of raw materials. But since this increase affects all business actors, it can certainly be passed through," he concluded.