US-based Hybar LLC has announced that it has raised US$1.1 billion to build a second sustainable scrap metal recycling rebar mill in northeast Arkansas. The construction project will take two years and will continue to lead in product quality and environmental sustainability standards, the company said. Hybar’s rebar production capacity will increase to approximately 1.3 million tons annually, representing just under 13 percent of the domestic market.
The new expansion follows the successful commissioning of Hybar's first rebar mill nine months ago. According to the statement, the existing facility achieved generating positive cash flow in its fourth month of operation, which the company said drove the decision to expand. Looking forward, Hybar expects the expansion to yield close to 5,000 tons of rebar per year per employee, which they believe will be the most productive labor force in the world’s steel industry, and double their current production capacity.
Hybar purchases electricity under a special-rate agreement with Entergy Arkansas, whose power generation portfolio is among the lowest carbon-emitting in the US. The company also receives electricity from its affiliated company, Green & Clean Power LLC, which operates what Hybar describes as the largest behind-the-meter industrial solar and battery storage facility in the US. Once the remaining certifications and harmonic testing are completed later this summer, the company expects to become the only steel producer in North America capable of manufacturing steel using 100 percent renewable electricity when solar power is available.
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