Market Segment
April 28, 2026
Nucor West Virginia mill is 85% complete, commissioning to finish in 2026
Written by Laura Miller
Nucor’s new, 3-million-ton-per-year sheet mill in Apple Grove, W.Va., has reached “about 85%” completion, with commissioning underway, according to executives speaking on a first-quarter earnings conference call on Tuesday.
Commissioning will run through 2026. The team will start with the pickle line, followed by the cold mill, the automotive galvanizing line, and then the EAF melt shop and hot mill later in the year.
“By the end of this year, we’ll be done with all the commissioning,” said President and COO Steve Laxton. “And then we’ll start moving up through production and ramp-up in ’27.”
Nucor expects commercial shipments to begin in early 2027. The company is planning a deliberate ramp-up through 2027 and 2028. Utilization could reach around 50% by the end of 2027, depending on market conditions, according to Laxton.
Laxton highlighted the mill will produce “some of the cleanest and most advanced sheet steel in North America,” with expanded capabilities for automotive and consumer-durable customers.
Nucor designed the project to grow its share in the Midwest and Northeast, two regions the company described as “large sheet-consuming markets” where it is currently underweighted.
Nucor leadership repeatedly highlighted the project’s strategic importance during the call. “Our team and I could not be more excited about the capability set that that mill will bring,” noted Chair and CEO Leon Topalian.
The project accounted for 40% of Nucor’s first-quarter capex of $661 million.
