Tag: Wind and Solar

Bend, Ore.-based Origami Solar has partnered with three US steel fabricators to prioritize a domestic supply chain for its solar frames.

SMU had the pleasure of attending the American Iron and Steel Institute's (AISI's) annual general meeting in Washington this week. It was a slow week in our nation's capital, so we were able to take a leisurely stroll around the National Mall and take in the sights. Just kidding. In fact, the meeting coincided with significant trade actions announced by the Biden administration. It included, among other things, additional tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum.

Solar tracker maker Nextracker and steel processor JM Steel announced the completion of an expansion of Nextracker-dedicated manufacturing lines at JM’s Leetsdale steel facility near Pittsburgh.

Reaction to the price announcements last week by domestic mills varied just a little depending on who you were speaking to. I heard rumblings before the announcements that a price hike of $100 per short ton (st) was coming. After the announcements were made, I had some questions as to whether they were increases at all.

The recession many predicted did not materialize in 2023, leading industry experts in several key end-user markets for steel cautiously optimistic for 2024.

The head of SSAB Americas talked the company's commitment to Swedish parent SSAB’s mission statement of sustainability at the Tampa Steel Conference 2024.

SMU discussed wind energy, a promising end-use market for steel, with SSAB Americas’ SVP and CCO Jeff Moskaluk.

SSAB Americas will supply its low-carbon SSAB Zero steel to GE Vernova Onshore Wind for wind towers in North America.

The historically significant Sparrows Points steel mill site in Baltimore is set to live another life as a wind turbine factory under the name “Sparrows Point Steel.”

The LME aluminum three-month price was broadly unchanged on Friday morning, Oct. 6, and was last seen trading at $2,243 per ton. Due to the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day celebrations, the SHFE is closed for holidays from Sept. 29 to Oct. 6. According to a report from Bloomberg, leaders from the EU and the […]

Steel Dynamics Inc. (Inc.) has entered into a long-term agreement with Array Technologies to provide a fixed supply of coil for the solar tracking equipment maker’s US projects.

President and CEO of Ternium Mexico Cesar Jimenez discussed positive demand trends and challenges in the Mexico market with SMU managing editor Michael Cowden during a fireside chat on Tuesday, Aug. 22 at the SMU Steel Summit in Atlanta.

Nucor executive Daniel Needham detailed at this year's Steel Summit what’s on the horizon for the steelmaker as the company continues to diversify.

Nucor Corp. announced it will be providing steel to help build a new solar project in Kentucky. In addition, the steelmaker has agreed to purchase power from the project.

Five domestic steel trade associations wrote a letter requesting the government to ensure the use of US-made steel in certain components of wind and solar projects receiving federal funding. Addressing the letter to US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the groups included the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), […]

Five domestic steel trade associations wrote a letter requesting the government to ensure the use of US-made steel in certain components of wind and solar projects receiving federal funding. Addressing the letter to US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the groups included the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), […]

Lock Joint Tube will supply steel tubing to solar energy company Array Technologies from a new mill in Texas.

Steel sheet prices have bottomed or soon will, according to most respondents to our latest market survey. We’ve also seen an uptick in expectations about future prices. The chart below provides a quick before/after snapshot of expectations for prices ahead of Thanksgiving and then following price hikes of $60 per ton ($3 per cwt) announced […]

The automotive, construction and energy sectors have seen their fair share of hurdles over the past year or so. Despite near-term headwinds, the outlook is bright, according to a panel speaking at the 2022 SMU Steel Summit conference in Atlanta. If we had a crystal ball, we likely would still lack the ability to discern […]

Steel Market Update just conducted one of our flat rolled and plate steel market surveys. The data collected consisted of responses from service centers (46% of respondents), manufacturing companies (32%), steel mills (10%), trading companies (8%), suppliers to the steel industry (4%), and toll processors (2%). We intentionally weight the number toward distributors and manufacturing […]

Steel Market Update just conducted one of our flat rolled and plate steel market surveys. The data collected consisted of responses from service centers (46% of respondents), manufacturing companies (32%), steel mills (10%), trading companies (8%), suppliers to the steel industry (4%), and toll processors (2%). We intentionally weight the number toward distributors and manufacturing […]

What does the rapid advancement of solar energy mean for the steel industry? Solar has major implications, both for the steel it will consume and the energy it will provide. Without solar energy, steelmakers have no chance of reaching their zero-emissions goals over the next three decades. Even if steel mills can somehow figure out […]

U.S. offshore wind energy is expected to grow rapidly, but bottlenecks in the market and a crucial lack of infrastructure mean that President Biden’s optimistic offshore wind target of 30GW by 2030 will almost certainly be missed, reports IHS Markit. Wind towers are a promising growth market for steel plate. IHS Markit expects U.S. offshore […]

In an interview with Steel Market Update on Thursday, Philip Bell, president of the Steel Manufacturers Association in Washington, shared his thoughts on what the change of presidential administration means for the steel industry and SMA. Following is an edited transcript: SMU: Will the change in administration next year change SMA’s mission? Bell: As a […]

My “final thoughts” provide me an opportunity to give my opinions on a wide range of topics. Some are directly steel related and some are not. The question we are all asking ourselves today is what will a Biden administration mean for business? Here are some thoughts I picked up from my reading over the […]

Crude oil prices broke out to the upside in December, but the rig count continues to decline.  U.S. exports of crude oil and petroleum products, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, naphtha, and many others, exceeded imports in September by 89,000 barrels a day, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported on Nov. 28. Thus, the U.S. […]

Editor’s note: Steel is the largest producer of global industrial CO2 emissions. So, as stemming climate change takes on ever greater urgency, steelmakers are challenged to find production methods that emit fewer greenhouse gases. New technologies in development range from improving process efficiency to carbon capture to using hydrogen instead of coal as fuel. Following […]

Favorable winds are blowing for Nucor Steel in Missouri. The company will start production at its new rebar micro-mill in Sedalia, Mo., by the end of December powered by clean energy provided by Evergy Inc.  Evergy has plans to build a windfarm at the Sedalia site that will offset 100 percent of the energy used […]

By CRU Senior Analyst Helen O’Cleary The global transition towards sustainable energy sources is set to accelerate over the coming decades as some of the world’s largest consumers of energy look to reduce carbon emissions, with the USA and EU targeting net zero emissions by 2050 and China by 2060. In this Insight, we bring […]

President Trump’s plan to revive the coal industry received a blow on Monday when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected a proposal by Energy Secretary Rick Perry to subsidize certain power plants. Perry’s proposal on grid reliance and reliance pricing recommended regional transmission organizations and independent system operators compensate plants that maintain 90-day fuel supplies […]