AMR loads first cargo at its deep-water port location

Alex’s Metal Recycling (AMR) LLC, based in Tampa, Florida, has loaded its first 80/20 heavy melting steel (HMS) cargo from its new deep-water export facility in Port Manatee, Palmetto, Florida. Contracted to haul 10,000 metric tons, the MV Janey C is destined for Vera Cruz, Mexico.

Alex Gregory owns and manages AMR and its sister company, Scrap King LLC, also based in Tampa.

He says he became interested in the scrap metal industry because a childhood friend had a father who worked in the business. After graduating from college, Gregory began working for his friend’s dad before going out on his own.

Gregory established Scrap King in 2008. That company operates a retail buying and nonferrous facility in Tampa and processes roughly 300 tons of material per month. In 2016, Gregory opened AMR, which operates a commercial and industrial heavy iron processing yard in Tampa in addition to its new port location. AMR processes roughly 5,000 tons per month.

AMR’s Port Manatee yard was opened in November 2021. It sits on 5 acres of concrete pad and is the only air-locked facility, granting access to the public and to the port, Gregory says. The company does no processing on-site. 

“The new facility is expected to handle around 6,000 tons a month of cut grades in 2022, with the goal to increase intake to 8,000 to 10,000 tons a month by end of 2023," he says.

Using a fleet of dump trailers and several hundred roll-off boxes, Scrap King and AMR service many large demolition projects and industrial and commercial accounts throughout the state.

The material that is shipped from AMR’s Port Manatee location is prepared at AMR’s Tampa yard, Gregory says, which is roughly the same acreage as the port location.

While AMR's first international shipment was to Mexico, Gregory says he's unsure whether that will be a common destination for AMR's shipments. Mexican consumers of ferrous scrap are willing to accept smaller cargos, enabling the material to move more quickly, he adds. However, Gregory says AMR’s port location has the room to put together larger cargos, and he expects to be able to ship his prepared HMS to Turkey as well.

AMR likely will purchase prepared material from other area yards for its overseas shipments, but Gregory says even in those cases, he expects AMR’s material to account for at least 80 percent of future shipments.

Gregory says the port facility will allow AMR to be more competitive on pricing with his its demolition and commercial customers because the company can sell directly to international consumers. “Florida is very export-dependent market,” he says. “Export-pricing drives the Florida market in particular.”