Gerdau Ameristeel Announces Succession Plan

The Board of Directors of Gerdau Ameristeel have announced the appointment of Phillip Casey as chairman in addition to his continuing duties as CEO. Jorge Johannpeter, current chairman, will remain as a director.

The board has also approved the appointment of Mario Longhi to the position of president, effective immediately. According to a press release issued by the company, the board anticipates that Longhi will be elected to the board in time and will succeed to the position of CEO following an orderly transition of
executive responsibilities to be completed by Jan. 1, 2006.

Longhi has been served on the executive team of Alcoa for 23 years, recently serving as an Alcoa vice president, a member of Alcoa's Executive Council and as group president, global extrusions and end products.

During his extensive international experience with Alcoa, Longhi
provided technical and professional leadership in the construction, start up,
market development, operation and change management of Alcoa's global mining, refining, smelting, rolling, extrusion, casting and forging and other product manufacturing affiliates. As a group president and member of the executive council, he actively participated in Alcoa's strategic direction and
policy decisions as well as the continuous improvement cultural initiatives of
Alcoa's Business System.

Longhi received bachelor's and master's degrees in metallurgical engineering from the University of Technology Maua, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

After relinquishing his day-to-day leadership responsibilities, Casey
will continue to serve as chairman and will transition to a more strategic
role guiding the company's growth plans and corporate governance activities.
He will also provide guidance and counsel to Longhi as he becomes
involved in policy decisions and the affairs of steel industry trade
associations.

Jorge Johannpeter, board chairman of Gerdau Ameristeel, says:
"Mario Longhi is a valuable addition to our management team and brings tremendous depth of international experience, proven leadership skills and dedication to the principals of continuous cultural improvement. We are excited to have Mario Longhi join our organization and look forward to his professional contributions."

Gerdau Ameristeel is the second largest minimill steel producer in North
America with annual manufacturing capacity of more than 8.4 million tons of mill finished steel products. Through its vertically integrated network of
15 minimills, 16 scrap recycling facilities and 42 downstream operations, Gerdau Ameristeel primarily serves customers in the eastern two-thirds of North America.