In a recent visit to Nucor Steel’s sheet steel mill in Huger, South Carolina, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin and Vice President JD Vance toured the facility run by the largest steel manufacturer and recycler in the United States. The company, which is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina and was founded in 1905, produces products for the agricultural, automotive, construction, data center, and energy industries. Since 2018, it has invested $20 billion in domestic manufacturing.
This Nucor Steel Berkeley facility produces flat-rolled steel that is used in products like appliances, cars, and water heaters, as well as steel beams for buildings and bridges. About 1,000 employees and 350 contractors work there, churning out about 3.6 million tons of steel per year. Last year, the facility broke ground on a new galvanizing line representing a $425 million investment and 50 additional jobs. As Rex Query, Nucor’s executive vice president of sheet products, stated at the ceremony, “This capability broadens the mix of higher margin value-added products that Nucor can provide to our customers. It also allows us to take advantage of the need our customers have for sustainable steel — sustainable steel being something that Nucor excels at producing.”
Leon Topalian, Nucor’s chair, president, and chief executive officer, told News 4 in advance of the visit, “Our Berkeley facility is currently in the midst of a $625 million modernization project and our teammates are excited to show the Vice President and EPA Administrator how Nucor runs one of the most advanced and cleanest steelmaking operations in the world.” The project includes the addition of a new air separation unit.
For over 50 years, the company has employed a circular electric arc furnace process, turning scrap metal into new steel products, consisting of 77% recycled material on average. “The steel in a Model T may have been recycled into rebar, which was recycled into a train, which eventually became a windmill. The cycle lives on,” Nucor explains on its website. As a result, the company uses fewer raw materials, and its average carbon emissions are one-third of the global average for blast furnace steelmaking. Nucor addresses its carbon footprint through power purchase agreements for solar and wind energy. Plus, water treatment systems enable it to recycle 90% of its water approximately eight to ten times.
Photo Courtesy Nucor
The event brought attention to industrial operations like Nucor’s in the area. Dr. Mark Owens, assistant professor of political science at The Citadel, explained before the tour, “We’ll learn more about how South Carolina contributes to a national economy and what we are exporting from the ports. This is a moment where the country is trying to find states to work with. South Carolina gets to be sort of a clear partner with the direction of where the country’s going to go.”
Berkeley County Supervisor Johnny Cribb described Nucor’s local impact: “Nucor Steel is an industry that has been invaluable in our community for decades. It’s been a lot to a lot of families, and also a lot of the community outreach efforts that they’ve done. So, we’re awful proud of Nucor Steel and we’re proud of what they do for the country as a whole.”
Photo Courtesy Nucor
In his speech, Vice President Vance noted that his grandfather was a steelworker in Ohio, and like him, these employees should be extremely proud of their hard work. “When you see a lawn mower, a water heater, a kitchen appliance in your neighbor’s home, or your home, I hope every single one of you guys in front of me feel a sense of pride. Because these are the products that make America work,” he said in his speech.
The visit highlighted Nucor’s boon to employment in South Carolina. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said, “I’m very pleased that Vice President Vance chose Nucor Steel in South Carolina to make the case for bringing high-paying manufacturing jobs back to America.” Taylor Van Kirk, a press secretary for Vice President Vance, explained, “Nucor Steel employs tens of thousands of Americans in good-paying jobs and produces key raw materials for defense, infrastructure, and domestic manufacturers, making our workers better off and our entire nation safer.”
Vice President Vance added, “I think we’ve got to send messages to our young people that the most interesting work — the work that’s going to challenge your mind but also allow you to work with your hands — is found at American steel mills right here in Nucor Berkeley in South Carolina.”
It is just the beginning for both Nucor and their operations in U.S. at large. As the company expressed in a social post, “Nucor is proud to support our nation’s economic and industrial strength while providing high-paying, meaningful careers in the communities where we operate.”
Zeldin noted that the administration does not have to choose between supporting manufacturing and the environment: “We choose both.” He expressed his gratitude for the tour and pointed to the future, “I want to thank the Vice President and Nucor Steel for the tour today, and I look forward to continuing our work to unleash American industry.”
