Steel Mills

Nucor Seeks LEED v4 Certification for New Plate Mill

Written by Laura Miller

September 21, 2022

Nucor Corp. is pursuing LEED v4 for Building and Design certification for its new plate mill in Brandenburg, Ky.

With categories of sustainable performance and climate change, and third-party transparency and reporting requirements, the certification is even more rigorous than previous LEED rating systems, the Charlotte, N.C.-based steelmaker said in a press release.

“Sustainability has been at the core of Nucor’s business model since we first started making steel in the 1960s. Our recycling production method makes us one of the cleanest steelmakers in the world,” Nucor chairman, president, and CEO Leon Topalian said. “LEED certification extends our sustainability efforts to the materials and operating system choices we make in constructing this new steel mill.”

In building the new, $1.7 billion Brandenburg mill, Nucor has used sustainable building materials, many of which have been directly manufactured by other divisions of the company.

“Our Nucor Steel Brandenburg team is proud to be the first Nucor mill to undertake LEED v4 certification. We make our products in a sustainable way and these products, such as steel for offshore wind towers, are going to help build the green economy. It is only natural that we would construct this mill using sustainable materials and practices,” noted Johnny Jacobs, vice president and general manager of Nucor Steel Brandenburg.

The 1.2-million-tons-per-year Nucor Steel Brandenburg plate mill is on track to begin production by the end of this year.

Earlier this week, Nucor announced it is lowering discrete plate prices, affecting its late October and November order books.

By Laura Miller, Laura@SteelMarketUpdate.com

Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. She has held a variety of positions within the steel industry since 2007, including reporting and editing for Steel Business Briefing/Platts, the Association for Iron and Steel Technology, and Kallanish Commodities, as well as marketing for what was then known as ThyssenKrupp Steel USA (now AM/NS Calvert). After a five-year hiatus working across other industries, she returned to steel in 2021 and has covered the flat rolled, tubular, and trade areas of the industry. She is a member of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries and a past-president of the AWMI Pittsburgh Chapter. She holds a BA in Latin American Studies from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. She can be reached at laura@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7869.

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