Tenaris Algoma Tubes, a Sault Ste. Marie steel seamless tube manufacturer, received $16 million from Ottawa.
A July 26 news release from the federal government indicated the money is earmarked for upgrades to the Wallace Terrace facility, adjacent to Algoma Steel in the city's west end.
It’s part of a larger $36.3 million spending announcement with money also going to Tenaris’ Prudential mill in Calgary to “improve mill performance and product capabilities.
The federal government said the funding creates 88 jobs and maintains 516 more in the two Canadian mills owned by the global supplier of pipe products for the oil and gas industries.
The money is coming from the government’s Strategic Innovation Fund.
Ottawa is framing this announcement is an investment that encourages innovation in the energy industry, and previous funding announcements in Algoma Steel as securing good-paying Canadian middle-class manufacturing jobs.
"The development of Canada's energy resources requires high-quality OCTG (oil country tubular goods) products, and expanding our service offerings is crucial to support the energy industry,” said Tenaris Canada president Guillermo Moreno in a statement.
"The new investment will also strengthen our Rig Direct® business model with shorter lead times and increased flexibility, while improving our customer support."
"The steel industry is the source of thousands of well-paying middle-class jobs in the Sault community,” added Sault MP Terry Sheehan. “Our government is proud to support steel companies such as Tenaris Algoma Tubes as they upgrade their facilities to become more competitive and create and maintain those critical jobs in our local economy."
“This investment will support over 600 workers at Tenaris and help it upgrade its Algoma Tubes and Prudential facilities, become more competitive and expand its product offerings,” said Innovation, Science and Economic Development Minister Navdeep Bains.
