SDI investing in Heartland steel expansion

Electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker Steel Dynamics (SDI) is investing in a new galvanized and paint lines at its Heartland plant in Terre Haute, Indiana.

In a tax abatement filing with the Vigo County Council, SDI laid out its $231mn investment at the Heartland site to add 390,000ft2 to the 800,000ft2 facility in order to build a galvanizing line and a paint line. The equipment is expected to cost more than $196mn, with the galvanizing line costing $126mn, and the paint line costing $60mn.

The expansion would be located adjacent to the existing plant.

SDI did not respond to requests for comment.

The company announced in April that it would be building four new value-add lines, with one galvanizing line and one paint line each in the south and Midwest. The southern value-add lines will be built in proximity to SDI's new 3mn st/yr flat-rolled mill in Sinton, Texas, located near the port city of Corpus Christi. The company has not yet announced the location of the Midwest value-add lines.

The Midwest lines would have a combined capacity of 540,000st and are expected to be operational in the second half of 2022, according to chief executive Mark Millett in an earnings call on 20 July. The company previously said the galvanizing line would have a capacity of 300,000 st/yr, while the paint line would have a production capacity of 240,000st/yr.

Heartland has a capacity of 1mn short tons (st)/yr of cold rolled steel and galvanizing capacity of 360,000st/yr.

SDI bought the plant from Brazilian steelmaker Companhia Siderugica Nacional (CSN) in 2018 for $400mn.

By Rye Druzin