IPSCO Inc. (NYSE/TSX: IPS) and SSAB Svenskt Stal AB ("SSAB") announced today that approval from the Canadian Minister of Industry under the Investment Canada Act has been obtained and the companies have obtained clearance from the Canadian Competition Bureau in connection with the Plan of Arrangement pursuant to which SSAB Canada Inc., a subsidiary of SSAB, would acquire all of the outstanding shares of IPSCO for U.S.$160.00 per share.

The completion of the Arrangement remains subject to shareholder approval on July 16, 2007, approval of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on July 17, 2007, and the satisfaction of certain other conditions described in the Management Proxy Circular dated June 11, 2007 that was mailed to shareholders of IPSCO and is available on SEDAR at . IPSCO and SSAB expect the transaction to be completed on July 18, 2007.

IPSCO is a leading producer of energy tubulars and steel plate in North American with an annual steel making capacity of 4.3 million tons. IPSCO operates four steel mills, eleven pipe mills, and scrap processing centers and product finishing facilities in 25 geographic locations across the United States and Canada. The Company's pipe mills produce a wide range of seamless and welded energy tubular products including oil & gas well casing, tubing, line pipe and large diameter transmission pipe. Additionally, IPSCO is a provider of premium connections for oil and gas drilling and production. IPSCO trades as "IPS" on both the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges.

SSAB is a Swedish based publicly traded corporation with a leading European position in Quenched & Tempered heavy plate and EHS/UHS steel sheet. The Group comprises four divisions: Division Sheet and Division Heavy Plate are the steel operations with steel shipments of 3.1 million metric tonnes in 2006, Plannja is a processing company in building products, and Tibnor is the Group's trading arm supplying a broad product range of steel and metals. The Group has sales revenues of almost U.S. $ 4.6 billion. SSAB has 8,800 employees and has operations or offices in over 40 countries and a worldwide sales presence.

This document contains forward-looking statements based on assumptions that are subject to a wide range of business risks, including consummation of the Plan of Arrangement being dependent on the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, including the approval of IPSCO's shareholders and the approval of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. There is no assurance that the estimates and expectations in this release will be realized. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward- looking statements are described in the periodic filings of IPSCO with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. IPSCO does not undertake any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

IPS Ref#07-19