US: Hyundai Steel to start construction of Louisiana EAF-based integrated plant in Sep’26

• • 2.7 mnt/year EAF to produce automotive-grade flat steel

• • Hyundai Steel targets commercial production in Q1CY’29

Hyundai Steel will hold the groundbreaking ceremony for its electric arc furnace (EAF)-based integrated steel mill project in Louisiana, US, on 4 September (local time), marking the transition of the project into the main construction phase.

According to industry sources, Hyundai Steel sent invitations for the groundbreaking ceremony on 2 July. Invitees include senior officials from the US federal government and the Louisiana state government, representatives from South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korean Embassy in the US, as well as key executives from Hyundai Motor Group and POSCO Group.

The company is currently carrying out site inspections and finalising preparations for the ceremony. Senior executives from Hyundai Motor Group and POSCO Group, together with Louisiana state government officials, are expected to attend, although the final list of participants has yet to be confirmed.

Project advances across investment, infrastructure, equipment:

Since the beginning of this year, the Louisiana steel mill project has progressed in stages across investment, site preparation, equipment procurement, and infrastructure development.

On 26 January, Hyundai Steel completed capital contributions to the HPLS (Hyundai POSCO Louisiana Steel) joint venture alongside Hyundai Motor (15%), Kia (15%), and POSCO (20%), establishing the foundation for the project. Later that month, the company attended the Mardi Gras event in Washington, D.C., where it met senior officials from the Trump administration, Louisiana state government representatives, and members of the US Senate and House of Representatives to strengthen cooperation on the project.

From February, Hyundai Steel began site preparation and ground improvement works, marking the start of on-site construction. During the same month, it also held the groundbreaking ceremony for a local training centre to establish a workforce development base for future steel mill operations.

In March, the company expanded cooperation with the local community by supporting a Washington, D.C., training programme for high school students from Donaldsonville and

Ascension Parish under the Louisiana Scholars initiative. It also signed a power supply agreement with US utility Entergy to secure a stable electricity supply for the project.

In April, Hyundai Steel signed a memorandum of understanding with France’s Fives for cooperation on cold rolling equipment. In May, HPLS launched its official website for local residents and other stakeholders. In June, the company signed a memorandum of research agreement (MRA) with Louisiana State University (LSU) to establish industry-academia cooperation for developing EAF-based steelmaking technology and training skilled personnel.

Major equipment procurement nears completion:

Construction of the plant’s key production facilities is also progressing in phases.

In January, Hyundai Steel signed contracts with Italys Danieli for core upstream equipment, including direct reduced iron (DRI) and electric arc furnace (EAF) facilities. In April, it formalised a contract with Frances Fives for downstream cold rolling equipment. More recently, it selected Germany’s SMS Group as the supplier of hot rolling and cold rolling mill equipment, completing most of the procurement framework for the plants major production facilities.

The Louisiana steel mill will be built as an integrated EAF-based steelworks with annual production capacity of 2.7 million tonnes (mnt). The product mix will comprise 650,000 tonnes (t) of hot-rolled steel and 2.05 million tonnes (mnt) of cold-rolled steel. Of the total output, around 1.8 mnt will be automotive steel, while 900,000 t will be general-purpose steel.

Construction schedule unchanged:

Hyundai Steel is currently completing environmental, safety, and construction-related approvals required before full-scale construction. Once these administrative procedures are finalised, the company plans to accelerate construction activities.

The Louisiana steel mill is a strategic North American project jointly invested in by Hyundai Steel, Hyundai Motor, Kia, and POSCO. The total investment amounts to approximately $5.8 billion. The facility will feature an integrated EAF production route comprising DRI, EAF, hot rolling, and cold rolling.

Hyundai Steel plans to begin full-scale construction in the second half of this year while maintaining its original schedule of trial production in the third quarter of 2028 and commercial production in the first quarter of 2029.

Note: This article has been published in accordance with a content exchange agreement between SteelDaily and BigMint.