JSW Steel began construction last week on a new electric arc furnace (EAF) and slab caster at its Baytown, Texas, plate and pipemaking facility.
Construction is expected to take 18-20 months to complete. The EAF will have the capacity to produce 1mn t/yr of raw steel. Baytown will be the only melt and manufacture plate mill with a contiguous pipe mill in North America, JSW said.
"JSW Steel is committed to be a leading steel manufacturer using the most technologically advanced equipment," JSW USA director Parth Jindal said. "With start-of-the-art facilities spread across India, North America and Europe, the upgrade of our plant in Baytown, Texas, is another step for us in achieving our goal."
JSW currently imports semi-finished slab from its India-based parent company and other sources to supply the Baytown mill. It has requested tariff exemptions for the imported slab.
The EAF and slab caster are part of a $500mn investment intended to "enhance" JSW's US footprint. The company is also considering spending a similar amount to upgrade existing facilities and install a second EAF at its recently acquired sheet mill in Mingo Junction, Ohio.
