Reuters: Russian pipemakers find silver lining in standoff with West
Russian pipemakers are benefiting from the standoff between Russia and the West, receiving multi-billion-rouble orders as work on new pipelines to Europe and Asia is fast-tracked, the owner of trading firm PIT told Reuters.
Gazprom has accelerated work on the South Stream natural gas pipeline, which will carry gas to Europe bypassing crisis-hit Ukraine, while work has begun on the "Power of Siberia" pipeline to China - the result of Russia's pivot towards Asia as relations with the West have cooled.
Russian steel pipe producers including Severstal and ChelPipe, which together spent around $12 billion on new capacity in 2000-2012, now stand to reap the reward at a time many other firms are struggling with a tough business climate and an economy at near-standstill.