Nucor Announces Second Major Expansion At Hickman, Ark., Plant
Nucor Corporation announced May 11 that its board of directors has approved the construction of a galvanizing line at the company’s barge-served sheet mill plant in Hickman, Ark., to serve the automotive market. The company said in a press release that the move would “support Nucor’s growth into a wider and more diverse set of strategic end-market applications.”
The new galvanizing line is a $240 million investment with an annual capacity of about 500,000 tons. It is expected to be operational by the first half of 2021.
It is the second major expansion at the plant in recent years. In 2016, the company announced a $230 million cold mill project at the plant that should be completed soon. The latest expansion will complement the specialty cold mill complex. “These projects are important components of Nucor’s long-term strategy for profitable growth and will accelerate the company’s goal of increasing its automotive market share,” the company said in a press release.
“At Nucor Steel Arkansas, we are building one of the most modern and efficient steel mills in the world,” said John Ferriola, chairman, CEO and president of Nucor. “This new galvanizing line, coupled with our new specialty cold mill complex, will allow us to efficiently produce products beyond the capability of any North American mill, and to have the flexibility to meet current and future demand for advanced high-strength steel products.”
The company is also evaluating building additional galvanizing lines at its other sheet mills as part of Nucor’s initiative to further expand its sheet business.
“Building this galvanizing line will diversify the product mix at Nucor Steel Arkansas and allow us to better serve our automotive and value-added customers,” said Mary Emily Slate, vice president and general manager, Nucor Steel Arkansas. “We are positioning ourselves to become a major supplier to the growing galvanized market in the U.S.”
Nucor and its affiliates manufacture steel products, with operating facilities primarily in the U.S. and Canada. Products produced include: carbon and alloy steel—in bars, beams, sheet and plate; hollow structural section tubing; electrical conduit; steel piling; steel joists and joist girders; steel deck; fabricated concrete reinforcing steel; cold finished steel; steel fasteners; metal building systems; steel grating; and wire and wire mesh.
Nucor is North America’s largest recycler. Through the David J. Joseph Company, Nucor also brokers ferrous and nonferrous metals, pig iron and HBI/DRI; supplies ferro-alloys; and processes ferrous and nonferrous scrap.
