Final Thoughts

Keep in mind that this is the high season for tourism in Florida, so rooms are going fast. You can learn more about the agenda, explore networking opportunities, and register here.

There will be an outdoor networking reception on Sunday evening as well as a golf tournament and a harbor tour of Port Tampa Bay on Monday morning. The conference program begins Monday afternoon.

I’m personally looking forward to fireside chats with senior executive from mills across North America. I spoke with Canadian sheet and plate producer Algoma Steel Group recently to prepare for my talk with company CEO Michael Garcia.

One of the things we’ll talk about is decarbonization. That’s a high-level, theoretical debate at some companies and among certain policy circles. It’s happening in practice and on the ground at Algoma right now – where the company is installing two new electric-arc furnaces (EAFs), while also continuing its existing integrated operations.

To be clear, this is not a greenfield project. Steel has been melted and made on Algoma’s campus since the early 1900s. So rail tracks have to be moved, networks of pipes reconfigured. What’s particularly interesting to me is the process of taking a BF/BOF operation and transitioning to EAF steelmaking – and temporarily running both processes in tandem. I’m looking forward to learning more about exactly how and when that shift will happen.

There’s a lot more than decarbonization to discuss, of course. Garcia and I will also talk trade policy, the outlook for key end markets in the US and Canada, and we’ll take questions from the audience, too.

SMU has intentionally made this event a North American one. Also joining me for fireside chats at Tampa Steel will be César A. Jiménez Flores, president of Ternium Mexico, and Kenneth Jaycox, senior vice president and chief commercial officer of US Steel.

Speaking of attendees, here is a list of companies who have registered so far. Those with an asterisk next to their name are sending more than one person to the event:

ADM Investor Services, ArcelorMittal Dofasco*, ASSA ABLOY Door Group, Bank of America, Blackhawk Steel, BNSF Railway*, Clipper Americas Inc.*, Coastal Cargo, Coilplus Inc., Cooper Consolidated LLC, C-River Logistics, Duferco Steel LLC, Empire Stevedoring (LA) Inc. – a company of QSL, Esmark Inc.*, Gibraltar – SEMCO, Harbor Freight Transport Corp., Hyundai Steel Co.*, Illinois Tool Works (ITW)*, JFE Shoji America, LLC*, Leeco Steel LLC, Macsteel International USA Corp., Misteelco Inc., Monti Inc., National Material Electrical, North Star BlueScope Steel, Nucor, Ohio Pickling & Processing, Olympic Steel Inc., OmniSource, Optima Steel International LLC*, Phillips Manufacturing*, Phillips Tube Group, QSL America*, Raleigh St Metal Recycling, Rukert Terminals Corp., Ryerson*, Second City Metals, SSA Atlantic LLC*, Steel Warehouse, thyssenkrupp Steel North America Inc.*, voestalpine USA LLC, Webco Industries

We’d like to see your company’s name on that list, too. And we look forward to seeing you in Tampa in February!

By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com