Industrial gas company Universal Industrial Gases (UIG) is expanding its South Carolina footprint by investing $100m in a new 200,000 sq ft industrial gas facility at its steel producer parent Nucor Corporation’s Darlington County steel mill in the state. It is expected to open by December this year, principally making the air gases oxygen, nitrogen, and argon.
UIG, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nucor, operates production plants across the US, including one in Berkeley County, also in South Carolina, supplying Nucor sites as well as third-party clients, so it is more than a captive entity.
Scott Pape, UIG General Manager, said the investment builds on 60 years of business in the state. “The project is part of Nucor’s strategy to produce its own industrial gases for use in its steel mills,” he said.
The investment comes as the US federal government is pressing ahead with tariffs on steel imports.
The American Iron and Steel Institute has said it supports President Trump’s actions in implementing tariffs on imported steel and eliminating the steel Section 232 exclusion process that has been “exploited” as a loophole by foreign producers, it is argued by some .
“The comprehensive programme of national security tariffs and other measures on steel imports put in place in 2018 allowed the American steel industry to restart idled mills, rehire laid-off workers and begin investing tens of billions of dollars in new and upgraded plants,” it said.
“Unfortunately, the effectiveness of those measures has been eroded in recent years and foreign steel overproduction has led to increased dumping of excess foreign steel production onto world markets, as well as widespread transshipment and diversion of steel from third countries.”
