Tag: steel mill

SSAB Americas delivered slightly lower shipments and operating results in the third quarter of 2026 due to a planned maintenance outage. Still, the company saw strong demand in key US end markets, specifically in heavy industrial segments. The Swedish steelmaker’s Americas division shipped 446,000 metric tons (mt) in Q3’26, down from 473,000 mt in the previous quarter but up from 440,000 mt in Q3’25, according to its 2026 third quarter report. SSAB President and CEO Johnny Sjöström described stable shipments vs. year-ago results. On an earnings conference call, he highlighted strong underlying demand and higher prices, “up higher than we guided for, by roughly 8%.” Results came in despite maintenance-related volume fluctuations related to a planned outage at the company’s mill in Montpelier, Iowa, during the quarter.

Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau’s North American operations posted higher profits in the third quarter as shipments increased. The company posted adjusted EBITDA of 2,912 million reais (USD$567 million) in the third quarter ended Sept. 30 for its North American operations, up 60% from 1,820 million reais from a year earlier. Net sales rose 14% to 10,512 million reais in the same comparison.

United States Steel Corp. plans to break ground on its direct-reduced iron (DRI) production facility in Arkansas this week. The Pittsburgh-based steelmaker will hold a ceremonial groundbreaking on Friday morning, according to a media advisory sent to SMU. The DRI facility will be located next door to the Big River 2 steel plant in Osceola, Ark. U.S. Steel said the new facility will utilize iron ore sourced from the company’s Minnesota Ore operations. BRS2 will transfer hot DRI to its two electric-arc furnaces to produce steel for the automotive, solar, packaging, and construction industries.

Nucor expects steel mill shipments to grow closer to the upper end of its 5-10% range in 2026, President and COO Steve Laxton said on the company’s third-quarter earnings call on Tuesday. He cited demand from infrastructure, reshoring, digital infrastructure, and energy investment as demand drivers. A presentation released with the company’s Q3’26 earnings report said manufacturing construction spending remained near $170 billion annually, with activity broadening beyond chip plants to include power equipment, aerospace and defense, pharmaceuticals, and automotive. Data center construction spending doubled from 2024 to 2026, with a 20% compound annual growth rate projected through 2031.

Nucor has been awarded an entire General Motors platform for exposed automotive sheet, Chair and CEO Leon Topalian said on a call Tuesday discussing the company’s third-quarter earnings. Topalian described the award as a breakthrough for Nucor in a product area he said integrated steelmakers had long dominated. Nucor plans to shift related process engineering and quality control work to its new West Virginia sheet mill as the facility ramps up, Topalian said. He said the mill would be capable of producing high-end automotive steel. Noah Hanners, executive VP of sheet products, said West Virginia automotive tons would begin customer qualifications in 2028.

JSW Steel’s US operations reported higher EBITDA in the second quarter of FY 2026-27, as improved sales realizations offset lower production at its Ohio and Texas facilities. The company's electric-arc furnace (EAF) facility in Ohio produced 224,933 short tons (st) of slabs in the quarter, at 62% capacity utilization. Slab production fell quarter over quarter, primarily because of a scheduled shutdown for electrical upgrades and maintenance, the company said. Sales were 112,663 st of slabs and 91,198 st of hot-rolled (HR) coil. EBITDA rose 22% q/q to $5.85 million, driven by better sales realizations, which partly offset the effect of lower volumes.

Domestic raw steel production fell last week, dropping to the lowest output since January, according to the latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures. The seesaw pattern continued for US production this past week, maintaining a trend seen for the past few months. Fluctuations have been so significant that in just the past two months, output has hit both a six-year high and a six-month low. And despite the week-to-week variations, output has mostly trended lower. Still, despite that overall decline, output to date in 2026 remains strong compared with recent years. AISI estimated total US raw steel mill output to be 1,774,000 short tons (st) in the week ending Oct. 24 (Figure 1). Production was 96,000 st (5.1%) below the prior week, driven by cuts in two of the five regions tracked by AISI.

Australia’s BlueScope has raised its earnings outlook for the first half of fiscal 2027, citing stronger-than-anticipated performance at its North Star BlueScope mill in Ohio and improved results across several other businesses. The Melbourne-based company said in earnings guidance on Monday that it expects its North American businesses to deliver earnings about two-thirds higher than in the second half of fiscal 2026. North Star is forecast to perform nearly three-quarters better than in that period, when it reported EBIT of AU$484 million (US$339.8 million). BlueScope attributed the North Star uplift primarily to stronger benchmark spreads.

Wheeling-Nippon Steel has appointed Matt Caprarese as vice president of manufacturing. His appointment was effective Oct. 14, the company said in a LinkedIn post. Caprarese most recently served as VP of engineering, HSSE, sustainability, and plant services at JSW Steel, overseeing operations in Mingo Junction, Ohio, and Baytown, Texas. He previously held positions at ArcelorMittal and United States Steel. “With a strong background in Maintenance, Environmental and plant services/utilities, Matt brings valuable industry knowledge and leadership experience to his new role,” the company said. “We look forward to Matt's leadership in strengthening our manufacturing operations, supporting operational excellence, and contributing to the continued success of Wheeling-Nippon Steel.”

Global raw steel production slowed for the fourth straight month in September, according to the latest figures from the World Steel Association (worldsteel). After falling 3.4% month over month (m/m) in August, the total volume of raw steel produced around the globe ticked down 1.2% to an estimated 142.4 million metric tons (mt) in September. Output was down just 0.1% year over year (y/y). On a 12-month moving average (12MMA) basis, annual production has averaged 149.3 million mt per month across the past year. This was down 1.6% y/y and was the lowest 12MMA since May (Figure 1). Before September 2025, annual output had generally hovered between 152 million mt and 154 million mt for over three years, similar to pre-pandemic levels.

BlueScope has announced interim leadership for its US operations with the impending departure of Kristie Keast. BlueScope has announced interim leadership for its North American operations ahead of the departure of Kristie Keast. Keast will leave the company at the end of October after serving as chief executive of North America since February 2023, the company said. "Kristie has made a significant contribution to BlueScope during her 25-year tenure,” said BlueScope’s managing director and CEO Tania Archibald. “On behalf of the Board and Executive Leadership Team, I thank her for her leadership and commitment to the Company and wish her every success for the future."

Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) expects tight supply, lean inventories, and firm demand to support steel pricing and margins through the fourth quarter and into 2027, Chairman and outgoing CEO Mark Millett and incoming President and CEO Theresa Wagler said on the company’s third-quarter earnings call. SDI’s steel mills operated at 92% utilization in the third quarter, compared with an estimated 80% for the domestic industry.

Domestic raw steel recovered last week, improving for the first time in three weeks, according to the latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures. Over the past four months, however, US production has fluctuated significantly. In just the past six weeks, output has hit both a six-year high and a six-month low. While there […]

Cleveland-Cliffs recorded its first profitable quarter since 2024 on higher steel prices, increased sales volumes, and trade policies supportive of US mills. The Cleveland-based steelmaker swung to a profit of $152 million in Q3’2026 compared to a loss of $251 million in the same quarter last year on revenue that rose 18.5% to $5.6 billion over the same period. Prior to Q3’2026, Cliffs had not posted a profit since Q2’24, when it recorded a profit of $2 million.

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. expects to earn more from the repricing of contract tonnage than it previously projected. The Cleveland-based steelmaker raised its estimate for the earnings benefit of the repricing to about $850 million from about $500 million. The company also said negotiations for 2027 contracts are progressing better than expected. More than half of the 2027 renewal process was complete as of Cliffs' third-quarter earnings call on Monday morning.

Mesabi Metallics, part of the Essar Group, has picked Midrex Technologies to supply the direct-reduced iron (DRI) component of its planned $15 billion steelmaking complex in Iowa. Recall the company announced plans to build a 10-million-ton-per-year mill, which would make it by far the largest steel plant in the US. The first phase is planned for 7.5 million tons of steel per year, with first production planned for 2030. Midrex’s Flex technology will be used for the DRI portion of the project, producing hot DRI for direct feed to the adjacent electric-arc furnaces (EAFs), as well as hot briquetted iron (HBI).

Manufacturing activity improved in several Federal Reserve districts, but conditions remained mixed nationwide, according to the Fed’s Oct. 14 Beige Book report. Demand was strongest in steel, machinery, defense-related products, and data center infrastructure. Steel producers in the Cleveland District reported firm spot market demand. Data center, power-generation, defense, and aerospace projects supported orders. Long mill lead times kept customer inventories lean and prices high. Producers also reported higher orders from truck-trailer and light-vehicle manufacturers. International demand for hydrogen vehicle parts increased.

Hertha Metals has broken ground on its first commercial plant, a $100 million project that the startup says will demonstrate its process at scale and lay the groundwork for a 500,000-metric-ton-per-year steel mill. The company celebrated the groundbreaking of the Hertha Chalyx project on Friday, Oct. 9, in Conroe, Texas. The plant is designed to produce ~10,000 metric tons of steel-grade and magnet-grade high-purity iron each year. It will run on domestic iron ore, primarily from Minnesota’s Iron Range, and natural gas from Texas.

Several mills that bought October scrap early last week are still asking for additional supplies, scrap market participants said. The reason: the mills' initial prices did not attract enough of the raw material, they said. A trading source based in northern Ohio said three mills have contacted his firm seeking offers for additional tons. He said the mills asked for offers even if prices were higher than their original buys last week.

Domestic raw steel output declined last week, moving lower for a second straight week after seeing notable swings over the prior several weeks, according to the latest American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures. Over the past six weeks, US production has fluctuated significantly, hitting a multi-year high and a six-month low. While the seesaw pattern has been extreme, output has mostly trended lower since peaking in May. And despite repeated declines in recent weeks, output remains strong compared to recent years. AISI estimated total US raw steel mill output to be 1,769,000 short tons (st) in the week ending Oct. 10 (Figure 1). Production was down 5,000 st (0.3%) from the prior week, driven by a decline in just one of five regions. So far this year, we have seen weekly production rise as high as 1,900,000 st in early September (a six-year high) and fall as low as 1,704,000 st at the start of the year.

Philip K. Bell, head of the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), delivered the opening presentation at the fall meeting of the International Iron Metallics Association (IIMA) in Chicago this week. He touched on three key themes: Section 232, the Mesabi Metallics mill in Iowa, and the increasing importance of financial experience for leadership positions in steel.

CRU Research Principal speaks about the implication of Mesabi Metallics' proposed steel mill in Iowa.

Nucor's consumer spot price for hot-rolled increased by $10/st w/w on Monday, Oct. 5 to $1,230 per short ton.

SSAB Americas aims to increase base plate prices by at least $60 per short ton (st), according to a letter sent to customers on Monday.

SMU’s Current Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Index fell this week, while Future Sentiment remained flat, according to our latest market survey.  

Nucor said on Thursday evening it plans to increase plate prices by $60 per short ton (st) as it opens its November order book.

Startup steelmaker Hertha Metals has secured $133.65 million in its Series A round of funding, including a $65 million equity investment from the US government.

President Trump announced that Mesabi Metallics will build the largest steel plant in the US in the state of Iowa.

Global raw steel production slowed for the third month in a row in August, according to the latest figures from the World Steel Association (worldsteel).

The current plate market squeeze has been driven by improved demand and heightened import barriers, including 50% Section 232 tariffs. But the timing of fall outages—even if they were planned—is exacerbating the supply crunch.