In announcing the company’s fourth-quarter earnings last week, Nucor chief executive Leon Topalian said commissioning of the SMS-group built bar mill wrapped up in December. 

“While the timeline of this project was slightly extended due to COVID-related disruptions, customer acceptance of the new products has been extremely strong. We expect to achieve positive cash flow from this investment in Q1,” he said. 

At the same time, Nucor is preparing to install a new caster and ladle stirring station at the plant’s meltshop. The US$40 million project is to be commissioned at the end of this year. 

“This investment will significantly improve the energy efficiency of the Kankakee mill,” said Topalian.