Japan’s Sumitomo Corp acquires USA’s Edgen Group for $520m

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Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based Edgen Group’s subsidiaries include Edgen Murray, a global distributor for oil and gas drilling, transportation, refinery, and power plant equipment such as pipe, connectors, flanges and valves; and Bourland & Leverich (B&L), a US domestic OCTG distributor that has been expanding its business, supported by growth in the shale industry.

The Sumitomo Corp group has been a long-time supplier in the OCTG industry and has an extensive distribution network in the USA. More recently, it has been increasing its investments in pipe mills and the fabrication of specialised products to broaden its presence in each step of the value chain surrounding the oil and gas market.

The Edgen Group acquisition is expected to further strengthen and expand this network to cover demand for both onshore development, where demand for products including OCTG and line pipe is expected to increase from shale activity; and offshore oil and gas development where strong demand for pipe, steel plate and specialised materials is expected to continue.

The Edgen Group last year posted $2 billion in sales revenues. It is 55.6% controlled by private equity firm Jefferies Capital Partners.