Texas county makes bid for SDI mill

County commissioners designate land as reinvestment zone to try to lure steel mill.


The commissioners of San Patricio County in south Texas have approved an incentive package intended to help lure a scrap-fed electric arc furnace (EAF) steel mill being planned by Fort Wayne, Indiana-based Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI).

According to an online news item by KIII TV in Corpus Christi, Texas, San Patricio County commissioners approved reinvestment zone status for a piece of property near Sinton, Texas.

The commissioners consider it a “first step” in attempting to attract the proposed $1.8 billion EAF mill to their county, which is located along the Gulf Coast northeast of Corpus Christi.

According to the news item, the site selected has about 250 acres of land and is near a highway junction. A county commissioner making a presentation at the Feb. 21 meeting commented that in addition to melting scrap, a mill near Sinton would be situated near a hot briquetted iron (HBI) facility operated by Voestalpine Texas LLC in nearby Portland, Texas.

Next up for the county commissioners will be tax abatement and permit considerations, according to KIII.