August 26, 2011
Hundreds of construction and permanent production jobs will be created in San Patricio County during the next three years with the construction and startup of the $1 billion TPCO America mini mill and seamless pipe plant. Company and local officials held a jubilant groundbreaking ceremony on Aug. 26 to kick off the construction phase. (Site preparation work began in mid-September).
Among those participating the the groundbreaking were (above) Josephine Miller San Patricio Economic Development Corp.; Dr. Paul Clore, Gregory-Portland ISD superintendent; City of Gregory Mayor Victor Lara; TPCO Vice President Wenfeng Zhang: San Patricio County Judge Terry Simpson; Congressman Blake Farenthold; TPCO President Qiang Li; and (below) Texas Secretary of State Hope Andrade; Houston General Consul Erwen Xu; State Rep. Todd Hunter; CERI Chairman She Shi; John Casey, TxDOT district engineer; Debra Barrett, San Patricio Drainage District; Roland Mower, Corpus Christi Regional EDC; and Judy Hawley, Port of Corpus Christi Authority commissioner repesenting San Patricio County.
The San Patricio Municipal Water District will supply the plant with 2 million gallons per day of water needed to sustain pipe production. Two million gallons per day is equal to approximately a 20% increase in the total amount of water that the District provides to industrial customers on a typical day.
A final plan for how best to meet the TPCO demand is not complete but the District already has transmission lines which serve the plant site. Preliminary engineering studies to determine the cost of upgrading the District’s raw water supply system and expanding Plant C microfiltration capacity to accommodate the company’s needs have been completed.
TPCO America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tianjin Pipe Corp. which is based in China, The company announced plans in 2009 to construct the mini mill and seamless steel pipe plant. Once air permits for the plant were approved in 2010, TPCO purchased a 252-acre site located on the east side of State Highway 35 and north of State Highway 361.
Geotechnical studies of the site were conducted this summer and engineering for site development has been underway for many months. Drainage was among the many issues that had to be addressed in the planning process.
The Texas Department of Transportation awarded a contract earlier this year and work is underway on construction of a new overpass and SH 35 freeway extension that will provide better access to the TPCO site. The project includes improvements at the FM 136 intersection just north of the plant site.
The Water District has a long history of working with industrial water users and provides various grades of treated water and untreated water to industrial customers under long-term contract. Water rates are set by the District Board of Directors based on the cost of production and delivery. Industrial customers pay the full cost of producing and delivering the grade of water they require.
Learn more about TPCO (here).
