Steel Mills

JSW Receives Grant to Upgrade Mingo Junction’s Rail Infrastructure

November 10, 2023

JSW Steel USA is expanding the rail infrastructure at its Mingo Junction mill, thanks in part to a grant from the state of Ohio.

The steelmaker has received a $500,000 grant from the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC) to support two rail projects. The projects come at a combined estimated total investment of $5.1 million and will help to increase the mill’s finished steel and scrap processing capabilities.

The first project will expand the mill’s Norfolk Southern/Wheeling & Lake Erie shared yard from 184 car spots to 351. The mill’s internal logistics will also be improved by a new interplant loop track, according to an ORDC announcement sent to SMU.

The second project will expand rail infrastructure for scrap and iron storage by installing 3,360 linear feet of track and four rail switches. This will support the processing of scrap at volumes needed to produce 125,000 net tons of slab each month.

The rail projects are part of the company’s recently announced $145-million investment at Mingo Junction. Other upgrades to be made at the mill include enhancements to the vacuum tank degasser and new caster capabilities to make slabs in the widths required for offshore wind projects.

“Rail transportation is one of the many aspects that are integral to everyday business operations and is vital to the steel industry,” commented Jonathan Shank, COO of Mingo Junction, in the ORDC announcement. “Investing in our infrastructure will facilitate successful completion of our growth projects,” he added.

Shank was recently appointed COO of the Mingo Junction site, according to a LinkedIn post from the company.

Shank joined JSW Steel USA in 2019 as director of steelmaking operations. He began working in the steel industry in 1998 through a co-op program with AK Steel.

JSW’s Mingo Junction mill, the former Wheeling-Pittsburgh steel plant, has an EAF and a hot strip mill with rated capacities of 1.65 million and 3.08 million tons per year, respectively, according to AIST’s Iron and Steel Works directory.

Laura Miller

Laura Miller is a reporter and editor for Steel Market Update. Since 2007, she has held various editorial and marketing positions with steel industry publications, associations, and mills. In 2021, after a five-year hiatus working across other industries, she returned to steel trade journalism, joining SMU in 2022. 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.