Nucor to add furnace capacity in Arizona

Charlotte, North Carolina-based steelmaker Nucor Corp. has announced it will add a new melt shop at its bar mill in Kingman, Arizona. The anticipated $100 million melt shop will have the capacity to produce 600,000 tons of raw steel annually. Construction of the melt shop is expected to take two years, pending permit and regulatory approvals.

“This investment in a new melt shop at our Arizona bar mill is part of our strategy to grow our core steelmaking business and will help us maintain our market leadership position in steel bar production,” says Leon Topalian, president and CEO of Nucor. “Adding new melt shop capacity will help meet the growing demand for steel bar products in the Western region, which is one of the fastest growing areas in the United States.”

Steel production in the West lags behind that of other regions, according to figures kept by the Washington-based American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). In the week ending this July 30, for example, just 64,000 tons of steel were made in the AISI Western region. That lags behind 728,000 tons in its Southern region; 562,000 in the Great Lakes region; 207,000 in the Midwest region; and 166,000 in the AISI North East region.

One of the last mills in California, an electric arc furnace (EAF) mill in Rancho Cucamonga last operated by Commercial Metals Co. (CMC), was idled in late 2020, with the land sold off last year. CMC has attempted to shift some of that capacity by expanding its EAF output in Mesa, Arizona. Nucor will now try to boost Western U.S. output with the Kingman project.

In September 2021, Nucor announced its intention to build a new melt shop at one of its existing bar mills in the Western United States. Nucor Steel Kingman is the ideal location for this project because it is a rolling mill that converts steel billets into coiled wire rod and rebar but lacks a melt shop. The Kingman mill currently employs approximately 80 teammates.

Wire rod and rebar made downstream of the melt shop in Kingman are used primarily in concrete reinforcement for the construction of roads, buildings, bridges and other structures. Nucor will use scrap-fed EAF technology and refers to itself as “one of the most sustainable steel producers in the world.” Nucor says its steel bar products last year averaged 98.5 percent recycled content.

“Nucor’s new sustainable steel production facility will strengthen Arizona’s vibrant manufacturing ecosystem,” says Sandra Watson, president and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “Nucor’s new facility will produce quality steel and steel products while maintaining the highest safety and sustainability standards. We are grateful for Nucor’s commitment to Kingman, creating high-wage jobs while driving further economic growth in the area.”

Nucor has 15 bar mills in the U.S., with four of them focusing on special bar quality (SBQ) and wire rod products. Nucor estimates its current bar steel production capacity at approximately 9.56 million tons per year.

In addition to its EAF steelmaking operations, Nucor makes steel racking; steel piling; steel joists and joist girders; steel deck; fabricated concrete reinforcing steel; cold finished steel; precision castings; steel fasteners; metal building systems; insulated metal panels; overhead doors; steel grating; and wire and wire mesh. Through its Cincinnati-based David J. Joseph Co. business unit, it processes and brokers ferrous and nonferrous scrap metal.