International Steel Mills

Brazil's CSN Eyes New Galv Line, EAF Longs Mill in U.S.

December 9, 2021

Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (CSN) is considering plans to build an electric arc furnace (EAF) long products mill and a galvanizing facility for steel sheet in the United States.

That’s according to an investor presentation in which the Brazilian steelmaker said new plants in the U.S. as well as expansions in Europe and in Brazil were “under analysis.”

The relevant slide from the Dec. 8 presentation is here:

CSN investor day slide

“We want to take advantage of our low leverage moment to diversify,” Reuters quoted CSN CEO Benjamin Steinbruch as saying. He also said M&A was not on the table because valuations had become too high.

CSN will decide whether to move forward with the proposed projects next quarter. Those in the U.S. are premised in part on increased demand expected from the Biden administration’s $1 trillion infrastructure plan, per Reuters.

CSN sold its U.S. operations in Terre Haute, Ind., to Steel Dynamics in 2018. But the Brazilian steelmaker maintains a presence in the U.S. via imports. That includes not only finished steel products but also semifinished slabs.

Brazil is subject to a Section 232 quota rather than the 25% tariff that most other foreign slab sources, notably Russia, must pay. That makes Brazilian slabs a key raw material for domestic slab converters.

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.