Gapipa files anti-dumping suit against Malaysian firm
Friday, July 20 2001 - 03:40 AM WIB
The association?s secretary-general, Untung Jusuf, said in Jakarta on Thursday that both Malaysian and Chinese companies used dumping prices in the tender for the construction of 71-kilometer pipeline project launched by state owned gas company PGN last month.
"At present, the dumping charge against the two companies is being investigated by the anti-dumping committee (KADI),? Untung was quoted as saying.
According to him, the Malaysian firm, through PT Hicom Petropipes offers their API 5L X-65 steel pipe at US$430 per ton CIF Batam, while the price of the same product in the Malaysian market is only $700 per ton.
The Chinese company, though its local representative PT Sahanxi Machinery & Equipment puts a price tag of $460 per ton for similar product, much lower than about $740 per ton in the Chinese market.
"The influx of the cheap steel pipes from the two countries has severely hurt the local producers,? Untung said, adding that the utilization of the locally-made steel pipes, which was only about 20 percent last year, could further decline due to the influx of the cheap steel products from other countries.
The association called on the government to issue an anti-dumping duty in a bid to protect the local companies. ?If not, many of local steel pipe producers, which at present provide jobs for about 10,000 workers, will be forced to close down their operation,? he added.
As the consequence, state owned steel company, PT Krakatau Steel as the main supplier of the pipe production in the country would lose many buyers if there is no an appropriate measure to protect the steel pipe producers.
He explained that PT PGN recently opened a tender for the procurement of steel pipe for its 71-kilomter pipeline connecting Sakernan-Kuatangkal, part of the 460-kilometer pipeline network linking Jambi, Batam and Singapore.
The Sakreman-Kuatangkal project will absorb at least 120,000 tons of hot rolled coil (HRC), the main raw materials for the production of steel pipes, he added.
In addition to the Malaysian and Chinese companies, the Gapipa also planned to file a similar suit against steel pipe producers from Brazil and Europe, Untung said. (*)