Steel Mills

Nucor Takes Planned Outage at Trinidad DRI Plant

Written by Michael Cowden

October 18, 2021

Nucor Corp. has taken a planned outage at is direct-reduced iron (DRI) plant in Trinidad.

“As it’s planned, we do not anticipate any impact on production,” a spokeswoman for the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said.

Nucor

Nucor did not specify when the Trinidad outage started or how long it might last. The issue will probably be discussed in further detail on Nucor’s third-quarter earnings conference call on Thursday, Sept. 21, the spokeswoman said.

The work on the Trinidad facility comes after Nucor restarted its DRI plant in Convent, La., she said.

The Louisiana DRI plant was taken down pre-emptively in August ahead of Hurricane Ida and then remained down into September because of a barge shortage stemming from the storm.

DRI can be used as an alternative to prime scrap.

Nucor’s DRI plants in Convent – roughly 60 miles from New Orleans – typically feeds Nucor’s inland mills, while the Trinidad plant typically supplies those located closer to coastal areas.

By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Michael Cowden

Michael Cowden is managing editor for Steel Market Update. Cowden has covered the steel industry since 2007. He specializes in flat-rolled steel but has also reported on steel long products, steel pipe and tube, and aluminum. Before joining SMU, Cowden held reporting jobs at Fastmarkets AMM in Chicago, the Associated Press in Pittsburgh, and the Cambodia Daily in Phnom Penh. He has also worked as a copy editor and in marketing at the University of Chicago Press. Cowden has a BA in English from the University of Chicago and an MSJ journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. Contact him at michael@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7872.

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