Steel Mills

Nucor Louisiana DRI Plant Still Down on Ida-Induced Barge Shortage
Written by Michael Cowden
September 14, 2021
Nucor’s direct-reduced iron (DRI) plant in Covent, La., remains down after being pre-emptively idled ahead of Hurricane Ida last month.
The reason: the storm resulted in a barge shortage on the Mississippi River, a Nucor spokeswoman said.
“We are prepared to resume operations as soon as additional barges are available,” she said.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker does not expect steelmaking to be interrupted by the lack of DRI output from Louisiana.
“At this time, our divisions have an adequate supply of DRI, so we do not anticipate this will have any impact on our steel production or our ability to serve our customers,” the spokeswoman said.
DRI can be used as an alternative to prime scrap.
The Convent facility, officially known as Nucor Steel Louisiana LLC, has capacity of 2.5 million tons per year, according to the 2021 Association for Iron and Steel Technology (AIST) Directory of Iron and Steel Plants.
Nucor operates DRI plants in Convent – roughly 60 miles from New Orleans – and in Trinidad.
The Convent plant typically feeds Nucor’s inland mills and the Trinidad facility those located near the coast.
By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Michael Cowden
Read more from Michael CowdenLatest in Steel Mills

Nippon could up investment in USS facilities to $7B: Report
It's the latest twist as the proxy battle heats up for Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel.

Hybar expansion still on the table as Arkansas mill startup nears
As Hybar nears the completion of its $700-million rebar mill in Arkansas, the company said it is still “actively considering” building other steel facilities in the southern US.

Global steel production edges lower in February
February’s global raw steel output is tied with last December's for the fourth-lowest monthly production rate recorded over the past two years.

Fate of U.S. Steel hangs in the balance
The future of U.S. Steel remains unclear, but the proxy fight for control of the company is heating up. Shareholders will cast their votes on the company's future at the annual meeting in May.

Cliffs to idle Dearborn blast furnace, restart Cleveland furnace by July
Cleveland-Cliffs has decided to idle the steelmaking operations at its Dearborn Works in Michigan due to weak automotive demand.