During the week starting 27 April 2009, India-based Welspun-Gujarat Stahl Rohren Ltd opened a USD 150 million plant in the US to make steel pipe. Welspun’s Little Rock project provides a look at how at least one company, backed by growth in an emerging economy, is making adjustments and plowing ahead as the US recession lingers. Welspun is betting it can position itself for a rebound when the economy perks up. Welspun’s Little Rock plant, which welds 80ft-long oil and gas pipes, is designed to run 500 people on three shifts. It now is operating one shift, 10 to 12 hours a day, with 300 people. The company is giving the plant 24 months to get to full capacity. To keep the Arkansas plant busy, Welspun-Gujarat is sending production from India to Little Rock. One of those projects is for about 240,000 metric tons on El Paso Corp.’s Ruby Pipeline, a 400mi conduit from Wyoming to Oregon. Little Rock is also filling orders made when the economy was strong, including about 245,000 metric tons for 750mi of conduit on a ConocoPhillips and TransCanada Corp. pipeline from Alberta to Illinois.