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From left: Big River Steel CEO John Correnti and Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe. |
Big River Steel LLC officially broken ground on its $1.3 billion steel mill and recycling facility in Osceola, Arkansas, on Sept. 22, 2014. Construction of the facility is expected to take around 20 months.
Big River Steel announced plans in early 2013 to build the “flex mill,” which the company says combines the cost advantages and flexibility of a traditional electric arc furnace (EAF) mini-mill with the varying production capabilities in gauge, grade and width of an integrated mill.
The facility’s backers say the mill will produce a full range of high-strength, lightweight steels used in the automotive industry; wide and thick steels used in pipe and tube applications; and electrical steels used in the energy industry. The company officially closed on the financing necessary to build the facility in July 2014.
“During my long career, I have been extremely blessed to be at events such as today many, many times,” said John Correnti, chairman and CEO of Big River Steel in a speech at the groundbreaking ceremony. “And while each of those was special, never has a day touched me as deeply as being here celebrating with all of you. Northeast Arkansas is my home. So to have the opportunity to build the world’s most advanced steel mill here – powered not just by technology, but by the work ethic of the people of Mississippi County – is for me an experience that is hard to put into words.”
The company says the EAF mill complex sprawls over approximately 1,400 acres on a site that provides Big River Steel with access to “the vast majority of domestic steel consumers as well as raw material supplies (i.e. scrap metal) from across the nation.” The site has barge access adjacent to the Mississippi River as well as rail access and “numerous highways in close proximity,” according to the company.
Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe, who took part in the groundbreaking ceremony, commented, “This is the largest single business investment Arkansas has ever seen, and Big River Steel will draw additional opportunities to Northeast Arkansas. Osceola’s workforce made this a destination for Big River, but it took the efforts of many parties, including the Arkansas General Assembly, to make this historic project a reality.”
To help in the construction and financing of the steel mill the state of Arkansas provided a financing package that included issuing $125 million in general obligation bonds.
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