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YOUNGSTOWN -- Citing a "rebound" in the oil and gas industry beginning in 2016, Vallourec Star has been ramping up hiring at its three Youngstown area businesses this year, according to a company spokeswoman.
The company operates Vallourec Star, which produces seamless steel pipe; VAM USA, a premium threading operation; and Vallourec USA Corp., which provides sales and administrative support.
Jean Gaetano, communications manager for Vallourec Star, said the company has added approximately 40 new employees in Youngstown this year. Vallourec employs about 750 people among its three companies and makes seamless pipe used as casing for oil and gas exploration and production.
In early 2016, Vallourec Star's work force had dropped from about 700 employees to 550 in at least two rounds of layoffs. Now, a surging market is leading the company to bring on additional employees to meet customer needs.
"The jobs we are hiring for are a mix of new positions and re-filling existing positions," Gaetano said. "The ongoing staffing effort is to meet our production demands as the oil and gas industry began its rebound in 2016."
Gaetano said the company has an ongoing needed for skilled production workers.
The company's jobs website lists several openings at its Vallourec Star and VAM USA locations. Hourly and salary positions at Vallourec Star include electrical maintenance, millwright, maintenance lead, production operator, quality operators and gage room. Positions at VAM USA include lathe operator, quality technician, threadline utility operator and methods engineer.
Mike Chadsey, director of public relations for the Ohio Oil and Gas Association, said industry adjustments over the past few years have led to the resurgence.
"Our producers began working smarter and made more with less," Chadsey said.
Oil and gas companies began cost cutting, he said. Drillers began using a new drilling technique that made extraction more efficient.
"They began drilling longer laterals, up to 20,000 feet," Chadsey said. "You don't have to poke as many holes in the ground and can drill longer (with a longer lateral approach)."
In 2016, for the first time, Ohio produced more natural gas than it consumed, making the state a net exporter.
Despite the upturn, President Trump's recent talks of renegotiating trade deals and imposing tariffs have given the industry some jitters.
"We're now the world's largest producer of crude oil and natural gas," Chadsey said. "We sent a lot of gas to Mexico. There's a lot of oil that crosses the Canadian border. We export liquefied natural gas to Europe. So there's a lot of concern about what those (new trade arrangements) will be."
Regardless of the current uncertainty, Chadsey said he takes a long view of the industry's fortunes.
"We've seen downturns in the past," he said. "It ebbs and flows."