- Published 2026.11.08 17:36
Major permits including environmental approval secured; full-scale foundation work begins
Aims to produce 2.7 million tons of eco-friendly steel sheet annually from 2029
Hyundai Steel and POSCO have completed major permits and begun full-scale foundation work on their joint steel mill in Louisiana, the United States. The project marks a key step in Hyundai Motor Group's US investment strategy to build a supply chain from molten iron to finished vehicles.
Hyundai-POSCO Louisiana Steel (HPLS) said on Nov. 8 via LinkedIn that it recently started the first pile driving for the plant's construction. Pile driving is foundation work that drives columns deep into the ground to bear loads. HPLS has secured all necessary permits for this phase and has begun construction in earnest.
HPLS held a groundbreaking ceremony in early September and obtained an air emissions permit from the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) in late October, meeting regulatory requirements for construction. The plant, with a total investment of $5.8 billion (about 8.12 trillion won), will be built on a 7.37 million square meter site within the Riverplex Mega Park near Donaldsonville. Commercial production is targeted for the first quarter of 2029.
The new mill will have an annual steel production capacity of 2.7 million tons, of which 1.8 million tons will be automotive steel sheet and 900,000 tons general steel products. It will be the first in the US to produce automotive steel sheet from iron ore in a single electric arc furnace process. By combining direct reduced iron (DRI) technology using natural gas instead of coal with an electric arc furnace, carbon emissions can be reduced by about 70% compared to conventional blast furnace processes.
The US currently imposes high tariffs on imported steel and offers duty-free benefits only for steel that uses a certain proportion of North American molten iron. HPLS, launched in this market environment, is owned 50% by Hyundai Steel, 20% by POSCO, and 15% each by Hyundai Motor and Kia.
Once the mill is completed, Hyundai Motor Group will have a supply chain in the US spanning steel production to finished vehicle assembly. Automotive steel sheet produced there will be supplied first to North American production bases such as Hyundai Motor's Alabama plant and Kia's Georgia plant.
HPLS expects the mill to create about 5,400 jobs, including 1,300 direct hires, when operational. Based on cooperation with the local community, it plans to accelerate the process to establish mass production by 2029.
※ This article is an AI translation of the Korean original published by Korea Credit News; it was checked by automated quality guards and published by the English edition desk.
