Market Segment
November 25, 2025
Foreign steelmakers eye restart of Republic Steel's Lorain ops
Written by Ethan Bernard
Republic Steel’s shuttered facilities in Lorain, Ohio, could find new life as international steelmakers, citing US tariffs, explore restarting operations there.
The site – a special‑bar‑quality (SBQ) steelmaking and rolling complex that includes an electric‑arc furnace, continuous casters, and billet/bar rolling mills – was essentially idled in 2015–16 by Mexican owner Grupo Simec.
Information shared with the City of Lorain estimates potential job creation at 500–1,200 positions, according to a Nov. 20 press release from Mayor Jack Bradley’s office. No companies have been publicly named.
“We are encouraged by the strong interest shown in Lorain as a site for renewed steel production,” Mayor Bradley said in the release.
He added that Republic Steel has been working with Ohio’s FirstEnergy to determine whether sufficient power can be delivered to support production.
The City of Lorain will continue to collaborate closely with Grupo Simec and prospective steel partners as discussions advance, it said.
Besides Lorain, Grupo Simec idled operations at Republic Steel’s Lackawanna, N.Y., and Canton, Ohio, mills in 2023.
A request for comment from Grupo Simec, which acquired Republic in 2005, was not returned by time of publication.
