Ahmed Hassan Al Dheeb, undersecretary at the Omani Ministry of Commerce and Industry said that his country is confident of winning an anti-dumping case against a local steel pipeline manufacturer that is being heard in the United States, reported the Times of Oman.

“This is due to a misunderstanding of some of the US regulations by the local companies,” he explained, adding that the company in question – Al Jazeera Steel – had won similar cases before.

Bull Moose Tube Company, Exltube, Wheatland Tube Company and Western Tube and Conduit were the American companies filing the suit.

Referring to the recent oil price fall and the consequent plunge in government revenue, he said the authorities would not discontinue incentives given to industries.

These include subsidized natural gas, he said, downplaying fears of an energy price hike. He also said the government had conducted a study on the impact of such a hike and found that the maximum impact would be only 7-8%.

According to Al-Bawaba, the Omani company has charged that oil prices are also in part responsible for this anti-dumping suit, filed by the Department of Commerce, because rig drilling and the shale industry in the US have come to a standstill.

Oil prices, likewise, have impacted has the ancillary supply chain, including the pipe market.

Hence the lawsuit against Oman, and four other countries, for under-priced steel pipes.