Posted on 27 Apr 2017
Buying the Georgetown steel mill is a major first step for the proposed new owner of the plant on the harbor at Georgetown.
While there is still much to do, the rumors of a potential buyer have been laid to rest.
During the Georgetown City Council meeting last Thursday, April 20, Mayor Jack Scoville said he had a phone call with Marcia Miller, ArcelorMittal’s vice president of government affairs. Miller told him the mill’s owners had signed a letter of intent with Liberty Steel, a subsidiary of Liberty House Group in the United Kingdom, for the plant.
“She was very emphatic that there was a long way to go before a closing may occur,” Scoville said. “This is the next step in the process. It has been done. It has been confirmed. It is no longer rumors.”
The mayor said he was looking forward to meeting with steel officials in “the near future” to discuss their plans.
On Monday afternoon, Scoville said he had a long conversation that day with Miller from ArcelorMittal. “She’s trying to set up a discussion with the new company and making plans” for the transition."
He said both ArcelorMittal and Liberty Steel were aware of the public hearing to be held Tuesday on rezoning.
“We look forward to talking with Liberty Steel,” Scoville said. “The worst thing that could happen would be for them to buy the property and sit on it. We want them to reopen as soon as possible.”
Liberty Steel is a subsidiary of Liberty House Group LLC of London.
When Korf Industries first opened the steel mill about 1970, Scoville said, it was polluting the town. The city wants to talk about environmental issues with Liberty.
“We expect (Liberty) to be a good corporate citizen and we will be a good partner to them as a business in the city,” he said. “We look forward to talking with them. We can see areas where we agree, and any areas of concern. We will always keep the best interest of the community foremost."
City Administrator Paul Gardner told the Georgetown Times on Monday that the planned public hearing on rezoning before the city’s Planning Commission would still go on as scheduled for Tuesday.
“Then, the Planning Commission will make their recommendation," Gardner said. "Rezoning could go forward and City Council can act on it at the next two meetings.”
“As James Sanderson (president of Local 7898 of the United Steelworkers), said, the city needs to plan for the future,” Scoville said.
In a joint press release Friday, ArcelorMittal and Liberty House Group said there is much to be done before a sale will be finalized.
Within the text of the new Redevelopment District (REDD) zoning, Gardner said, “the old purpose is grandfathered for five years, to recoup their investment. That length of time is appealable in the fourth year, and an extension can be granted.”
“We will facilitate reopening the steel mill,” Gardner said, “grant them a business license and welcome them into town.”
Executive chairman of the Liberty House Group, Sanjeev Gupta said: “This is a landmark day for Georgetown and its residents, particularly families with a previous stake in the steel industry who will now get a chance to rediscover what was lost. Our agreement in principle with ArcelorMittal opens the door to the eventual restoration of several hundred jobs, both directly and in the supply chain, and it gives this region’s economy a new industrial focus.”
John Brett, president and CEO of ArcelorMittal USA, said: “We are pleased to have an agreement in principle with Liberty House on the sale and restart of our former wire rod mill in Georgetown, S.C. We have achieved our goal of identifying a purchaser with extensive steel experience and a commitment to returning this site to its steel-making capability. We hope the community will welcome this opportunity that will preserve the facility and equipment and create good jobs with good wages. We look forward to working with the city of Georgetown and all impacted stakeholders while we finalize this important agreement with Liberty in the near future.”
Gupta, who started what is now Liberty House Group while he was still in college at Cambridge, has led the company to become a $7 billion international business. In 2009 Liberty acquired steel plants in Africa. Over the past few years it has expanded its steel holdings in the United Kingdom.
Liberty’s chairman Gupta said “This is a key first step for us in the USA. We’re keen to apply the same low-carbon GREENSTEEL vision here as we are doing in the UK. Acquiring the plant at Georgetown, with its ability to recycle scrap steel in an arc furnace, gives us a strong platform from which to launch our strategy in the USA. We’re confident that, with the right support from the community and authorities, we can make Georgetown and other US steel plants competitive, profitable and sustainable.”
Last week, union president Sanderson said he expected once the purchase agreement is completed a skeleton crew would initially go in to get the mill ready for production. He said the union has a labor agreement with Liberty. Approximately 250 workers would be expected to be on the payroll once the mill resumes operations.
The Georgetown steel mill has a 600,000-ton-a-year electric arc furnace and 750,000-ton-a-year rod mill.
