Gerdau Ameristeel Sand Springs Mill to Remain Idled
01/08/2010 - Gerdau Ameristeel will continue the idling of its Sand Springs steel mill for the foreseeable future, despite a comprehensive proposal from the State of Oklahoma and City of Sand Springs aimed at maintaining steel production at the company's Sand Springs steel mill.
Gerdau Ameristeel has decided to continue the idling of its Sand Springs steel mill for the foreseeable future. The company said the decision follows thorough evaluation of a comprehensive proposal that it received from the State of Oklahoma and City of Sand Springs aimed at maintaining steel production at the company's steel mill in Sand Springs, Okla.
Company executives met this week with representatives from the Oklahoma Treasury Department and the Department of Commerce, as well as with local officials and members of the legislative delegation to discuss the company's activities going forward.
"We appreciate the hard work of the City of Sand Springs, the State of Oklahoma, and the Sand Springs legislative delegation, led by House Speaker Chris Benge, State Senator Dan Newberry, State Representative Lucky Lammons, and Sand Springs City Manager Doug Enevoldsen," said Terry Sutter, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Gerdau Ameristeel. "We commend them for their extraordinary efforts in trying to find a workable solution to a very difficult problem. Unfortunately, due to a combination of on-going weak market conditions, the company's need for a significantly more flexible workforce structure at the mill, and the significant capital investment required by the company, we have decided not to move forward."
Gerdau Ameristeel reiterated its willingness to re-consider the proposal at a future time if business conditions warrant. The company noted that it continues to maintain a strong presence throughout Oklahoma, where it employs more than 100 employees at rebar fabrication locations, recycling plants and railway facilities in Sand Springs, Muskogee, Oklahoma City and Tulsa. In Sand Springs, the company will also continue to operate the Sand Springs Railway, as well as its Sand Springs Rail Products and Sand Springs Recycling facilities.
Gerdau Ameristeel is the second-largest minimill steel producer in North America, with annual manufacturing capacity of approximately 12 million tons of mill finished steel products. Through its vertically integrated network of minimills, scrap recycling facilities, and downstream operations, Gerdau Ameristeel serves customers throughout the United States and Canada. The Company's products are generally sold to steel service centers, steel fabricators, or directly to original equipment manufacturers for use in a wide variety of industries. Gerdau Ameristeel's majority shareholder is the Gerdau Group, a 100+ year old steel company, the leading company in the production of long steel in the Americas and one of the major specialty long steel suppliers in the world.
