Dive Brief:
- Steel producer Nucor broke ground on a $3.1 billion sheet steel mill in Apple Grove, West Virginia on Friday, the company’s largest investment in its history.
- Construction on the site is expected to last two to three years, with plans to produce up to three million tons of sheet steel a year. The facility will employ approximately 800 workers.
- The sustainable steel maker and recycler is capitalizing on U.S. clean energy and infrastructure spending spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and CHIPS and Science Act, which CEO Leon Topalian said in a recent CNBC interview are slated to create demand for six to eight million tons of steel a year.
Dive Insight:
The facility marks the largest manufacturing investment in West Virginia history. Gov. Jim Justice called the investment from one of the country’s largest steel producers a symbol of economic progress in the state.
“Nucor's decision to invest in West Virginia represents a true vote of confidence in our state's strength, resilience, and readiness to seize opportunities,” Justice said in a statement.
West Virginia competed against neighboring states, including Ohio and Pennsylvania, to attract Nucor, with the process beginning in August 2021 and the site announcement made in January 2022.
The facility is one of multiple manufacturing projects the state has attracted in recent years, including battery manufacturer Form Energy’s first commercial-scale factory.
Nucor’s newest groundbreaking comes as the company is battling falling demand. The steel producer’s net sales were down 16% year-over-year in Q3 at $8.78 billion, compared to $10.50 billion in Q3 2022. Steel shipments were also down 4% compared to last quarter.
The company expects the losses to continue next quarter due to lower pricing and decreased volumes.
