US steelmaker Nucor has idled its direct reduced iron (DRI) plant in Louisiana due to impacts from Covid-19.
The 2.5mn metric tonne (t)/yr plant, which provides scrap alternative feedstock for Nucor's electric arc furnace (EAF) mills, was taken offline as Louisiana grapples with the growing coronavirus outbreak. The company also said economic uncertainty contributed to the closure.
The closure follows Nucor suspending operations at its other DRI plant in Trinidad and Tobago due to government orders made in an attempt to control the spread of coronavirus.
Nucor uses DRI as a feedstock in its steelmaking process, which mainly uses ferrous scrap to produce raw steel. The company said its steel mills that use DRI are still operating and will use their existing DRI inventory.
