Nucor Plans Expansion on Top of Expansion: A 100-Job, $240M Sheet Metal Line in Hickman

MaryEmily Slate of Nucor.

Nucor Steel Arkansas is doubling down on its expansion in Mississippi County, planning a $240 million galvanized steel sheet metal production line at its sheet mill in Hickman.

The line, expected to be in operation by the first half of 2021 with capacity to produce a half-million tons of steel sheet metal annually, comes on the heels of a $230 million cold mill addition at the plant. That line, announced in 2016, is expected to be completed soon.

“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,” said John Ferriola, chairman, CEO and president of Nucor Corp., based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“At Nucor Steel Arkansas, we are building one of the most modern and efficient steel mills in the world,” Ferriola said in a statement included in a company news release.

The plant on the banks of the Mississippi River in Hickman, which began production in 1992, produces hot-rolled, cold-rolled and coated steel sheet, shipping products by barge, rail and truck to destinations across the United States.

While the company offered no details on new jobs accompanying the new sheet metal line, Brandi Hinkle of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission said 100 new positions look likely. Nucor Corp., the largest steelmaker in the United States, has a three-decade history in Mississippi County and employs nearly 1,700 at its four facilities there.

“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 MaryEmily Slate, vice president and general manager of Nucor Steel Arkansas. “We are positioning ourselves to become a major supplier to the growing galvanized market in the U.S.”