Nucor Getting Closer to Site Selection for $2-Billion Ironmaking Facility
05/16/2008 - Nucor applies for a permit to build a state-of-the-art iron-making facility in Louisiana that would produce 3 million tons/year of iron as well as power beyond its own needs through the capture and use of excess energy at the blast furnace and heat-recovery coke plant.
Nucor Corp. has applied for a permit to build a state-of-the-art iron-making facility in St. James Parish, La. The new company would be called Nucor Steel Louisiana.
Located on the Mississippi River, the St. James Parish, La., location is the only U.S. site still under consideration following a thorough, two-year evaluation of potential locations for a new state-of-the-art heat-recovery based iron producing facility. Nucor would produce 3 million tons/year of pig iron in the new facility, which—if built in the U.S.—would be the first greenfield pig iron facility built here in more than 30 years.
"Nucor would build one of the most modern iron making facilities in the world to produce 3,000,000 tons of pig iron, employing the latest technologies to reduce emissions. This facility would create hundreds of good jobs for American workers and demonstrate the effectiveness of new technology to protect the environment," said Nucor Chairman and CEO Daniel R. DiMicco. "At the same time, this project would help Nucor achieve our long-term goal of increasing control over our raw materials supply."
Nucor will employ advanced heat-recovery coke technology in this facility. Unlike conventional coke facilities, this coke plant would capture waste heat and use it to produce power, making the facility self-sufficient in power. According to the company, the new coke-making facility will meet and likely outperform current best-available control technology (BACT) requirements.
The new facility's blast furnaces will have the latest designs for emissions controls and energy efficiency. The facility would capture waste energy from the blast furnaces to produce power over and above its own requirements. By the second phase of this project, the facility would be producing 500 MW of power, of which 250 MW would be supplied to the grid, completely offsetting the emissions that would have been released had a facility been constructed to generate this new source of power.
Nucor’s new facility will also employ slag granulation technology that produces a valuable by-product used by the cement industry, completely offsetting the emissions they would have created to manufacture the same product.
Although the St. James Parish side is the only U.S. site still in the running for the new plant, sites outside of the U.S. are still under active consideration. And the company cautions that the project is not a certainty. Regardless of which site is ultimately chosen for the project, permits have to be issued and Nucor's board must approve the selection of the site and the capital investment.
In its evaluation of candidate sites both in and outside the U.S., Nucor considered many factors, including the features of each site, transportation, permitting, the State leadership’s commitment of the project, and the proposed incentive packages. The company said that the competitiveness of Louisiana's proposed incentive package—including significant infrastructure improvements—and the State's ability to move quickly were very important in the analysis.
“We are proud that Nucor, a company with a great reputation for creating jobs in the U.S., is considering Louisiana for this important project,” said Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. “This would provide a tremendous boost to Louisiana's economic development and further job creation. We will continue to work with local communities here to attract a facility that can become a national model for responsible manufacturing and economic growth.”
If the project is located in St. James Parish, Nucor would build a new high-capacity port on the river capable of handling ocean vessels, as well as barges of coal and pig iron. The project's first phase would require a $2-billion investment and would create five hundred permanent Nucor jobs, earning an average annual salary of $75,000, plus benefits—roughly twice the area's median household income.
If the second phase is built, Nucor would invest an additional $1 billion for a second 3,000,000-ton blast furnace and increase permanent employment to 750.
Nucor says the new plant would generate a huge economic impact, including the establishment of businesses and services that support this type of facility. It estimates that St. James Parish would earn an additional $3.3 million annually in sales tax receipts, and new business sales in the Parish would rise by almost $1.2 billion annually from phase one alone.
Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Nucor makes more steel in America than any other company. Nucor and its affiliates manufacture steel products, with operating facilities primarily in the U.S. and Canada. Products produced include carbon and alloy steel bars, beams, sheet and plate; steel joists and joist girders; steel deck; fabricated concrete reinforcing steel; cold finished steel; steel fasteners; metal building systems; light gauge steel framing; steel grating and expanded metal; and wire and wire mesh. Nucor, through The David J. Joseph Co., also brokers ferrous and nonferrous metals, pig iron and HBI/DRI; supplies ferroalloys; and processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap. Nucor is North America's largest recycler.
Nucor prides itself on its environmental reputation, workforce policies, and commitment to its communities. According to the U.S. EPA, the domestic steel industry including Nucor produces more steel today than it did in 1990, but does so with about 40% less carbon dioxide emissions, far outpacing the Kyoto Protocol goals. No other industry can claim such results and Nucor is a big part of that accomplishment. The company is also a member of the U.S. Green Building Council and has participated in other elite environmental programs, such as the EPA's National Environmental Performance Track program and the U.S. Government's voluntary Climate VISION program.
In addition to the community activities of each individual Nucor division, the Nucor Foundation has donated more than $43.5 million toward scholarships for our employees' children since 1974—$3.6 million in 2007 alone.
