“For months, I’ve said that we can’t get to the future fast enough. Today, I can say the future is now. We are acquiring Big River Steel, the cornerstone of our ‘Best of Both’ strategy,” said U. S. Steel president and chief executive David B. Burritt.  

“With Big River Steel, we can offer customers the high-performance, innovative steel products they expect from U. S. Steel’s scientists and application engineers made through a state-of-the-art, environmentally sustainable and efficient mini-mill process.”

In October 2019, U. S. Steel acquired a 49.9% stake in the mini-mill producer and took a four-year option on the remaining equity stake. Since then, acquiring the remaining piece of the business has been a top strategic priority for U. S. Steel.  

“This is aligned with the strong strategic execution and meaningful progress we’ve demonstrated in 2020 toward our goal of US$1 billion in capital and operational cash improvements. By completing our top strategic priority, Big River Steel, we expect to strengthen our order book, increase our competitiveness and accelerate further product innovation for our customers. Longer term, the lower, variable cost structure will increase our efficiency, profitability and cash flow across the business cycle,” Burritt said.