voestalpine Tubulars secures expansion of the Semmering Base Tunnel with high-tech tubes

25 April 2023 |

Following completion of the Semmering Base Tunnel, the new ÖBB southern line will create a completely new and, above all, rapid connection between Vienna and Graz or Klagenfurt. voestalpine Tubulars, a joint venture between the Austrian steel and technology group voestalpine and the American group NOV Grant Prideco, is providing high-strength tubes for safe tunnel driving in a highly complex geological environment. Together with the supply of high-tech rails, high-speed turnouts and the associated digital signaling technology from voestalpine Railway Systems, the voestalpine Group is thus making a further significant contribution to the implementation of this major project.

Best mechanical properties and highest quality for challenging conditions: The seamless tube specialist voestalpine Tubulars supplies and installs high-strength steel tubes with the appropriate know-how for one of the most important infrastructure projects in the heart of Europe.

ÖBB is an important long-standing customer and valuable development partner for us. I am pleased that we can also score points in this project with our premium products as well as our flexibility and reliability.

Franz Kainersdorfer, Member of the Management Board of voestalpine AG, and Head of the Metal Engineering Division

The Semmering Base Tunnel is one of the most complex tunnel constructions in Europe due to the challenging geological conditions with hard, soft, dry and water-bearing layers. From 2030, it will connect Gloggnitz in Lower Austria with Mürzzuschlag in Styria over a length of 27 kilometers and enable a journey of less than two hours by train from Vienna to Graz.

Seamless tubes not only for the energy sector

The premium tubes from voestalpine Tubulars are used in a wide range of industrial sectors: in the energy industry, the commercial vehicle and automotive industries and in various applications in the construction industry. The high-tech seamless tubes are also indispensable in the alternative energy sector, such as for the storage and transportation of hydrogen.

Metal Engineering Division

The voestalpine Group's Metal Engineering Division is the global market leader for railroad infrastructure systems and signaling technology with its Railway Systems business unit. With its Industrial Systems business unit, the division is also the European market leader for quality wire and a global supplier of complete welding solutions. Seamless tubes are also supplied all over the world from the Kindberg site in Austria. Customers come from the railroad infrastructure, oil and gas, mechanical engineering, automotive and construction industries as well as the renewable energy sector. As part of greentec steel, the Metal Engineering Division is already working and researching intensively on various innovative, climate-friendly technologies and production processes. In the 2022/23 financial year, the division generated revenue of around EUR 4.3 billion with its Railway Systems and Industrial Systems business units, over 40% of which was generated outside Europe. The division thus generated an operating result (EBITDA) of EUR 586 million and employed around 14,000 people worldwide.

The voestalpine Group

voestalpine is a globally leading steel and technology group with a unique combination of materials and processing expertise. voestalpine, which operates globally, has around 500 Group companies and locations in more than 50 countries on all five continents. It has been listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange since 1995. With its premium products and system solutions, voestalpine is a leading partner to the automotive and consumer goods industries, as well as to the aerospace and oil & natural gas industries. The company is also the global market leader in railway systems, tool steel, and special sections. voestalpine is committed to the global climate goals and has a clear plan for decarbonizing steel production with its greentec steel program. In the business year 2021/22, the Group generated revenue of EUR 14.9 billion, with an operating result (EBITDA) of EUR 2.3 billion; it has around 50,200 employees worldwide.

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