• Nucor Buys Fort Howard,
  Signs Rebar Deal
• Steel Industry Contributes to Tsunami Relief
• Deadline Extended for Stelco Offers
• Wheeling-Pittsburgh, Severstal
  Enter Coke Plant Joint Venture
• Hamilton Specialty Bar Ready to Roll
• Mittal Buys into Chinese Mill
• IMSA Acero Acquires Alabama Coil Coater
• Alcoa Buys Russian Fabricating Plants
• Gerdau Ameristeel Plans Upgrades
  
• Briefs
• People

Nucor Buys Fort Howard, Signs Rebar Deal
Nucor Corp. has signed an agreement to purchase substantially all the assets of Fort Howard Steel Inc.’s Oak Creek, Wis., operations. Fort Howard has about 140,000 tons of annual capacity to produce cold-finished bar in size ranges up to 6-inch rounds.

The addition of this business to Nucor’s existing operations creates a market leadership position for Nucor for cold-finished bar products, according to Dan DiMicco, Nucor’s vice chairman, president and CEO. “Fort Howard’s operations represent an outstanding complement to the existing service and product offerings we have today. Their proximity to the Midwestern markets, size and grade offerings, and tradition of delivering high-quality customer service will expand and build upon our existing cold-finish business,” he says.

The transaction was expected to close in mid-February.

Nucor also signed an agreement with Ambassador Steel Corp. to form Nufab Rebar LLC, a rebar fabrication joint venture that will expand both through greenfield projects and by acquiring existing assets.

Nucor is the largest producer of rebar in the United States, and Ambassador Steel is the largest independent rebar fabricator, with facilities in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin.

Steel Industry Contributes to Tsunami Relief
Several steel companies have pledged to help fund tsunami relief efforts in Asia.
Mittal Steel Co. N.V., London, pledged £1 million (about $1.9 million) to a variety of aid organizations and relief efforts to help with the long-term rehabilitation of the affected areas. Specifically, the company intends to provide assistance to damaged areas of India and Indonesia.

Additionally, Ispat Indo, the steel company in Indonesia owned by the Mittal family, has donated $100,000 to local relief efforts. It also pledged 50 metric tons of steel and made 100 employees available as aid volunteers.

Kobe Steel Ltd., Tokyo, pledged a donation of 10 million yen to the Japanese Red Cross Society. Its subsidiary, Kobelco Construction Machinery Co. Ltd., pledged 50 million yen in aid, comprising relief goods and construction equipment with operators and engineers at no cost to the disaster areas. In total, Kobe Steel Group intends to donate 60 million yen (about $579,000) in monetary contributions and goods.

Dofasco Inc. and IPSCO Inc. each donated $100,000 to the Canadian Red Cross South Asia Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. The Employee Donations Fund at Dofasco contributed an additional $10,000 to Red Cross.

IPSCO established an Employee Donations Fund to collect personal donations from employees. In addition to the funds already pledged, IPSCO will match every dollar contributed by employees.

The United Steelworkers of America International raised the union’s contribution to relief for victims of the Asian tsunami to $150,000. The union’s Canadian Humanity Fund had earlier committed $100,000. An additional $50,000 contribution will be made from the Steelworkers Education and Charitable Trust.

Deadline Extended for Stelco Offers
Stelco Inc. was allowed by Canada’s bankruptcy court to extend the deadline for the filing of binding offers from Jan. 31 to Feb. 14. The company said it had received a high level of interest from prospective bidders, all of whom were trying to complete due diligence.

While not disclosing their identities, Stelco said there are six bidders, apart from Deutsche Bank as the “stalking horse” bidder, that have advanced to Phase 2 of the bidding process held by the court.

Hap Stephen, chief restructuring officer, says the company is pleased about the level of interest and commitment shown by the parties that are advancing to the next phase. “The presence of seven strong bidders makes for a vigorous process. We look forward to an outcome that provides the best possible result for all our stakeholders.”

Meanwhile, two bidders came forward for the Stelpipe Ltd. assets after a Dec. 1 deadline. After evaluating their proposals, the court determined that it was in the best interests of Stelpipe and its stakeholders to allow the late parties to participate in the next phase of the process.

Stelco also secured an extension to its existing credit facilities and debtor-in-possession financing. Scheduled to expire Jan. 29, the financing arrangements now expire

Nov. 20, or on the effective date of a Plan of Arrangement or Compromise under the company’s court-supervised restructuring.

Stelco Plate Co. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary that was idled in April 2003 and has since defaulted on its loan facilities, has hired a liquidator to market the plate mill assets. A potential purchaser has been selected and an agreement is expected to close soon.

Wheeling-Pittsburgh, Severstal Enter Coke Plant Joint Venture
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. and Severstal North America Inc. have signed a non-binding letter of intent to create a joint venture involving Wheeling-Pittsburgh’s coke plant in Follansbee, W.Va.

Under the proposal, Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel will contribute the assets of its Follansbee coke plant to the joint venture, while Severstal will contribute most of the capital, approximately $140 million, to rebuild the facility over the next four years.

Severstal would also make a $20 million payment directly to Wheeling-Pittsburgh at the closing of the joint venture agreement, which should occur by the end of the first quarter.
The proposed agreement, after all capital contributions are received from Severstal, would provide Severstal with 50 percent ownership of the joint venture. At that time, each party would take 50 percent of the coke produced by the joint venture. Wheeling-Pittsburgh will be the operating owner.

The Follansbee plant, with its four coke batteries, will be able to produce more than 1 million tons per year after the improvements are completed.

“This agreement is good for Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel, the State of West Virginia and the domestic steel industry,” says James G. Bradley, chairman, president and CEO of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel. “It would ensure a significant investment in West Virginia and in domestic cokemaking.”

He notes that the coke market was highly volatile in the past year. “This transaction minimizes our risk while assuring an adequate coke supply for our remaining blast furnace and frees up capital for potential future value-added downstream investments.”

Hamilton Specialty Bar Ready to Roll
Hamilton Specialty Bar, formerly Slater Steel, has secured a Cdn $50 million revolving credit facility from CIT Business Credit Canada Inc., which concludes the steelmaker’s one-year restructuring plan after only nine months.

Delaware Street Capital acquired the bar maker last June and worked with the Steelworkers union to restore pension and health benefits lost by certain employees and retirees as a result of Slater’s bankruptcy. The revitalized company has reestablished itself as a key supplier of specialty bar products to the automotive industry.

“The company’s new owners have proven they are just as serious as are our employees about building the business,” comments Peter Melnick, chief executive officer of Hamilton Specialty Bar. “Our employees demonstrated their commitment to meeting our customers’ needs for product quality and service even during the most difficult moments of the bankruptcy proceedings.

“The financial stability provided by Delaware Street Capital’s investment last year allowed us to maintain those high standards as we completed our turn-around. With the credit facility in place, we are ready to ramp up the mills to full production capacity.”

Mittal Buys into Chinese Mill
Mittal Steel Co. N.V., London, signed a share purchase agreement to acquire 37.17 percent of the outstanding shares of Hunan Valin Steel Tube & Wire Co., Ltd. for about $314 million.

Hunan Valin is one of the largest steelmakers in China with annual steel production capacity of 8.5 million tons. Through the first nine months of 2004, the company produced more than 5 million tons of steel, posted sales of nearly $1.95 billion and net profit of about $85 million.

This transaction is a milestone for Mittal Steel’s business in China and an integral part of its global strategy, according to company officials. On closing the deal, Mittal Steel and Valin Group will each have an equal shareholding of 37.17 percent; Mittal Steel will participate in management and nomination of board members.

The purchase is subject to the approval of regulatory authorities in China and the China Securities Regulatory Commission. Closing is expected in the second quarter.

Lakshmi Mittal, chairman and CEO of Mittal Steel, says the Hunan Valin acquisition will provide the company with its first production platform in the world’s fastest-growing steel market. “We are confident that we can help the company expand further by applying Mittal’s many strengths.”

IMSA Acero Acquires Alabama Coil Coater
IMSA Acero, Monterrey, Mexico, has purchased the assets of Polymer Coil Coaters from Magnatrax Corp., for $29 million. These assets include a continuous steel painting line in Fairfield, Ala., which supplies the construction industry in the Southeast. The plant has an annual production capacity of 135,000 metric tons of pre-painted steel.
Santiago Clariond, IMSA Acero’s CEO, says the coating plant will be integrated into the operations of Steelscape, which the company bought last year from BHP Steel, Australia.

“One of our objectives for Steelscape is to grow in an ordered and profitable way to gain nationwide coverage as the American construction industry’s most important pre-painted steel supplier.”

The Polymer acquisition is in line with IMSA’s strategy to grow in high-value-added product lines, such as pre-painted steel. IMSA Acero now has industrial pre-painted steel capacity of 845,000 metric tons per year spread over the Northwest, Southeast and northern Mexico.

Alcoa Buys Russian Fabricating Plants
Alcoa Inc. has completed its acquisition from RUSAL of two fabricating facilities in Samara and Belaya Kalitva in the Russian Federation for $257 million.

“These plants have unique capabilities, a wide product breadth and a very capable workforce,” says Alain Belda, Alcoa chairman and CEO. “Acquiring these assets supports our growth plans in the commercial transportation, aerospace, automotive and packaging markets.

“We plan to integrate these facilities and invest in them so that we can better serve customers in Russia, Europe, Asia and the Americas,” he adds. “Over time, as these facilities are integrated into our system, we expect they will contribute to substantial advantages for our customers and competitive advantages for Alcoa.”
In 2005, Alcoa plans to invest more than $80 million in capital and technology in the two facilities.

“We have a proven track record of taking fabricating assets—such as those in Hungary, Spain and Italy—integrating them into Alcoa, and putting them in a strong position to compete globally and grow profitably,” says Belda.

The Samara facility, 500 miles southeast of Moscow, features a cast house, flat rolled products, extrusions, and forging capabilities; it serves customers in transportation, packaging and industrial products.

The Belaya Kalitva facility, 500 miles south of Moscow, features a cast house, flat-rolled products, extrusions, tubes and forgings capabilities, plus specialized plate rolling and finishing equipment that will increase Alcoa’s current supply position.

Gerdau Ameristeel Plans Upgrades
Gerdau Ameristeel, Toronto, has contracted Danieli Morgardshammar to upgrade its steel manufacturing facilities in Whitby, Ontario, and Cartersville, Ga.

New finishing facilities will be installed in Ontario, including a new continuous cut-to-length line. The mill will have new feeding and delivery equipment, enabling steel sections and bars to be continuously straightened during the rolling process. It will cut the steel to appropriate lengths and deliver it to the bundling machine.

At Whtiby, Gerdau will also add a secondary rebar bundler with stacking capabilities for flats and steel squares. The upgraded finishing facilities will process up to 35mm diameter rebar, rounds and squares, and up to 3-inch angles and 4-inch flats and channels at rates of 120 short tons per hour.

In Georgia, Gerdau will install a new 1,000-ton stationary cold shear and a new 80-foot, double-headed magnetic stacker at the finishing end. The shear will primarily cut flat bars, but when fitted with shaped blades, it will allow for a clean end cutting of steel angles and channels.

Briefs
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. has begun implementing Steelman Software Solutions Inc.’s Steel Enterprise Management Systems technology upgrades to run its computerized planning, order management, mill scheduling and production tracking tools. With the new system, “we have made major strides toward a significantly more efficient and intuitive set of tools for our sales, planning and operations group,” says Jeff Hoffman, the mill’s director of systems integration.

Mittal Steel Co. recently provided financial guidance for fiscal 2004 and 2005. For 2004, pro-forma numbers including International Steel Group—merged with Ispat International N.V. last October to form Mittal—show shipments of 67 million tons, operating earnings of $6.8 billion to $7 billion, and earnings per share of $7.20 to $7.40. For 2005, Mittal Steel anticipates pro-forma shipments of about 62 million tons and pro-forma operating income per ton to be similar to that of fiscal 2004.

Mill Services Corp., New York, has purchased Glassport, Pa.-based Tube City LLC, a provider of specialty services to the global steel industry. The investment was led by Wellspring Capital Management LLC, a New York equity investment firm, and certain managers from both companies. With the acquisition of Tube City, Mill Services offers metals recovery, scrap management, outsourced purchasing and ancillary services.

Quanex Corp. sold Piper Impact, its cold-forged impact extrusion business, to Piper Metal Forming Corp., a privately held company. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

RESCO Steel Products Corp., a subsidiary of Roanoke Electric Steel Corp., sold its reinforcing bar assets to Rockingham Steel Inc., a reinforcing bar fabricator in Harrisonburg, Va. Terms of the transaction were withheld. “RESCO is no longer a good strategic fit for us since Roanoke’s mill operation no longer produces reinforcing bars, which is RESCO’s primary raw material,” explains T. Joe Crawford, president and COO of Roanoke Electric.

Southland Tube Inc., reports it experienced a 94 percent increase in sales revenues in 2004 on shipments of 140,000 tons. The company expects to complete a $30 million expansion this fall. The project is to install a fifth mill to produce carbon steel tube up to 10 inches square and 12-3/4-inch-diameter pipe. Southland expects to hire operators for the new mill.

Sharon Tube Co., Sharon, Pa., was selected to participate in the U.S. Army’s “Soldier to Supplier” program, which recognizes key suppliers who support the Army’s efforts by providing on time, quality product. Sharon Tube produces the primer tube for the 120mm ammunition round used in the Abrams tank main artillery gun. U.S. Army representatives toured Sharon Tube’s facilities and visited with employees.

Gallatin Steel, Ghent, Ky., was named one of the best places to work in the State of Kentucky by the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and the state council of the Kentucky Society for Human Resource Management. Selection is based on an assessment of each company’s human resource policies and practices and the results of internal employee surveys. Gallatin Steel employs about 400 people.

Nucor Steel-Crawfordsville, Ind., has ordered a new P&H ladle crane from Morris Material Handling. Morris will engineer and build a new CMAA Class F severe-duty ladle crane that will be used to transport ladles of molten steel from the melt shop floor to the continuous caster turret. When completed in October, the 260/150/25-ton capacity P&H overhead crane will weigh more than 700,000 pounds, have a 75-foot span and run on rails 85 feet above the floor.

Northwest Pipe Co. will supply about $8.2 million worth of welded steel pipe to the Parthenia Trunkline, a project for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. The producer will supply about 18,500 feet of 60-inch-diameter steel pipe to be delivered in the second quarter. The company also received an order to supply about $9 million of welded steel pipe for a water treatment plant in Albuquerque, N.M. Northwest will supply about 11,500 feet of 20- to 120-inch-diameter steel pipe. Deliveries will begin in the second quarter.

AK Steel advised its flat-rolled carbon steel customers that a $196 per ton surcharge will be added to invoices for products shipped in February, which is down $9 from January’s surcharge of $205 per ton. AK Steel advised its electrical steel customers that a $410 per ton surcharge will be added to invoices for electrical steel products shipped in February, a $10 per ton increase from January. February surcharges on stainless steel products are outlined at www.aksteel.com.

Allegheny Ludlum added a $400 per ton surcharge to its silicon electrical steel invoices, effective Jan. 1.

Timken Latrobe Steel is changing its pricing policy to “price in effect at time of shipment” to select market segments, effective April 1. The steelmaker will temporarily suspend its cancellation charge of 50 percent during February on any planned orders to customers affected by this policy change. The new policy enables Timken Latrobe to increase the speed of planned capital projects and better align it with some of the market segments it serves, President Hans J. Sack says.

Timken Latrobe Steel raised prices 5 to 15 percent on all remelted aerospace alloys and air melt stainless steel grades effective Jan. 17. Universal Stainless & Alloy Products Inc. raised base prices 5 percent on all air-melted and 7 percent on all remelted steels, effective Jan. 17. This includes shipments of ingot, slab, billet, bloom, bar, flat bar, round bar, hexagon, square, rod and wire products made at its Bridgeville, Pa., and Dunkirk, N.Y., facilities. Universal is also raising its base price by 4 percent for all tool steel plate products manufactured in Bridgeville, effective Feb. 14. The Specialty Alloys Operations unit of Carpenter Technology Corp. raised base prices 7 to 13 percent on all premium-melted alloys in all product forms, effective Jan. 14.

PMX Industries Inc., a copper and brass rolling mill in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has started up a $1 million packaging line that includes two pick-and-place downlayers; ID/OD stacker with capability to lift from ID and OD at the same time; vacuum lift capability; automatic plastic bander for I-bands; and stretch wrap capability with rope wrapping on the pallet. The line includes several centering stages on the conveyers to maintain the alignment of the material as it passes.

The hourly workforce at Titanium Metals Corp.’s titanium mill products facility in Toronto, Ohio, ratified a new labor agreement that will expire in July 2008. The agreement represents an early renegotiation of the current agreement, which was due to expire in July. The United Steelworkers of America Local 5644 represents 350 employees in Toronto, including production, maintenance, clerical and technical personnel.

Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp. has begun implementing Steelman Software Solutions Inc.’s Steel Enterprise Management Systems technology upgrades to run its computerized planning, order management, mill scheduling and production tracking tools. With the new system, “we have made major strides toward a significantly more efficient and intuitive set of tools for our sales, planning and operations group,” says Jeff Hoffman, the mill’s director of systems integration.

Roanoke Electric Steel Corp. has hired Pittsburgh Logistics Systems Inc. to manage all outbound common carrier truck shipments from its steel plant in Roanoke, Va. Under a multi-year agreement, PLS will plan shipments, manage dispatch, schedule deliveries and administer the steelmaker’s entire transportation program.

Republic Engineered Products Inc.’s plant in Hamilton, Ontario (Republic Canadian Drawn Inc.) has been certified to the ISO 14001 environmental standard. The Hamilton plant was acquired by Republic in January 2004. All of Republic’s other facilities have been awarded recertification of their environmental management systems to the ISO 14001 standard.

Chicago Extruded Metals Co., Cicero, Ill., has been recertified to the new ISO 9001:2000 standard.

People
Kaiser Aluminum’s board of directors elected John M. Donnan as vice president, secretary and general counsel, and Daniel J. Rinkenberger as vice president and treasurer. Donnan succeeds Edward F. Houff, who remains with Kaiser as senior vice president and chief restructuring officer. Rinkenberger succeeds treasurer Kerry A. Shiba, who continues as vice president and CFO. Donnan has been with Kaiser since 1993. Rinkenberger joined Kaiser in 1991.

AK Steel Corp. has appointed David C. Horn and John F. Kaloski as senior vice presidents. Horn is general counsel and secretary and Kaloski oversees safety, operations, quality assurance, engineering, purchasing and supply chain management functions. Horn joined AK Steel in 2000 as assistant general counsel. Kaloski joined AK Steel in 2002 as director, operations technology, and was named vice president of operations in 2003. Before joining AK, Kaloski was senior vice president, commercial and planning for National Steel Corp.

Maverick Tube Corp.’s board of directors elected Gerald Hage as a director. He held several managerial posts at Baker-Hughes Inc., including president of Baker Oil Tools.

Joseph A. Carley has joined Southland Tube Inc. as vice president of sales and marketing. He has more than 25 years of experience in steel tubing.

Isidro Cantu was named general manager of Tex-Tube Co. of Houston, a wholly owned subsidiary of Villacero.

Greer Industries has appointed Bob Friend as vice president of marketing. He will develop new market opportunities for Greer’s carbon and alloy steel strip and flat wire.