Nucor to buy DRI pellets from Brazilian Samarco

US steelmaker Nucor has signed a five-year agreement with Brazil’s Samarco to supply DRI pellets, Recycling Today reports.

The agreement will take effect from the restart of Samarco’s third pellet plant, which is scheduled for January 2025. The Brazilian company will then almost double its pellet production from the current 9 million tons per year to 16.5 million tons.

According to Samarco President Rodrigo Vilela, demand for DRI pellets is growing as global decarbonization efforts accelerate and some industries look for cleaner resources for their production.

«Samarco is well positioned to become a strategic supplier in terms of decarbonization and will achieve this through joint developments with strategic customers such as Nucor. Samarco is also working to meet all of its environmental targets by 2050,» he said.

Nucor’s board of directors has approved $860 million for the construction of a 650 ktpa rebar micro-plant in the Pacific Northwest. The company continues to evaluate potential locations.

As GMK Center previously reported, last year Nucor confirmed its intention to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and set a new interim target for 2030. Currently, the company’s 2050 goals and 2030 interim target cover Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions from hot rolled steel production, as defined by the ambitious GSCC standard.