Steel Mills
USS Doubles Down on Arkansas, to Build New EAF Sheet Mill Next to BRS
Written by Tim Triplett
January 11, 2022
U.S. Steel will invest $3 billion in a new state-of-the-art minimill in Osceola, Ark., near its Big River Steel plant. This new minimill will combine two electric arc furnaces (EAFs) with 3 million tons per year of advanced steelmaking and finishing capabilities, highlighted by the first endless casting and rolling facility in the U.S. Construction is expected to commence in the first quarter of 2022, with production to begin in 2024.
“With this location selected and shovels ready, we are reshaping the future of steelmaking,” U.S. Steel President and CEO David B. Burritt said. “We had numerous competitive site options, but Osceola offers our customers incomparable advantages.”
When completed, the sophisticated new steelmaking facility, in combination with Big River Steel, will form a mega mill with capacity of 6.3 million tons per year. It will be capable of providing many of the most advanced and sustainable steels in North America, the company said. BRS is currently constructing new non-grain-oriented electrical steel and Galvalume/galvanizing lines at its Osceola mill.
U.S. Steel said this investment will enable progress toward its goals of reducing GHG emissions by 20% by 2030 and to have net zero emissions by 2050. It also creates a platform for the company to expand its capability to produce the next generation of sustainable steel solutions made with significantly lower GHG emissions than the traditional integrated steelmaking process.
“Our nation and our customers need a robust and resilient supply chain to meet consumers’ needs, and that starts with U.S. Steel’s advanced, sustainable steels. Steel is critical to so much of what the world builds, so how we make our products contributes directly to a better, more sustainable world for all,” Burritt said.
Industry sources had speculated that Osceola had the best chance of landing the new mill.
And the announcement that the new mill will use “endless” casting technology appears to confirm prior rumors that the endless caster initially slated for U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works near Pittsburgh would be relocated to Arkansas in part over concerns about carbon emissions related to the integrated steelmaking process.
It is possible to operate the endless caster in tandem with EAFs. Italian steelmaker Arvedi, for example, operates a flat-rolled EAF mill that employs an “endless strip production” (ESP) technology “ideal” for installation in the minimills, according to equipment supplier Primetals Technologies. And Primetals said in 2019 that it had agreed to supply U.S. Steel with similar equipment for Mon Valley at what was intended to be the first ESP in the U.S. and the widest ESP ever built.
By Tim Triplett, Tim@SteelMarketUpdate.com
Tim Triplett
Read more from Tim TriplettLatest in Steel Mills
Atlas completes Evraz NA deal, renames firm, and hires former USS exec as CEO
Atlas Holdings has completed its acquisition of Evraz North America (Evraz NA) and its subsidiaries.
ArcelorMittal: As tariffs slow global growth, Calvert could be a bright spot
ArcelorMittal expects less demand growth across most of the markets it operates in, including the US, because of President Donald Trump’s tariffs. But the Luxembourg-based steelmaker also thinks it stands to benefit from an increasingly regionalized world thanks to investments like the new EAF at its mill in Calvert, Ala.
Ternium posts solid Q2, expects further shipment growth
Latin American steel producer Ternium delivered a solid performance in the second quarter of 2025. Performance was driven primarily by higher realized steel prices in Mexico, even as shipment volumes declined slightly across its regional portfolio.
Algoma swings to loss on ‘unprecedented disruptions’ and trade barriers
Canada’s Algoma Steel saw a sharp loss in the second quarter amid a continued challenging market environment and “tariff uncertainties.”
Nucor eyes long-term gains amid strong demand and trade enforcement
Resilient demand across its steel product lines, combined with the continued ramp-up of key expansion projects, drove Nucor’s improved financial results and record-setting performance in the second quarter. That’s according to company executives speaking on an earnings conference call on Tuesday.