Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced an expansion in Ghent for North American Stainless (NAS), the largest fully integrated stainless steel producer in the United States. The company will expand its presence in the commonwealth with an addition to its 4.4 million-square-foot facility in Carroll County, creating 70 new full-time jobs with a $244 million investment.
“I’m excited to announce more growth in Kentucky’s metals industry with this latest investment from North American Stainless,” said Gov. Beshear. “NAS is a leading stainless steel producer in the United States, and all the company’s production lines are located at the company’s headquarters in Carroll County. I want to thank its leaders for continuing to put their faith in Kentucky’s workforce and investing in the commonwealth. NAS is growing at an incredible rate, with this being the company’s 13th expansion since it was founded in 1990. I look forward to seeing NAS continue to grow and create more opportunities for Kentuckians.”
The project consists of a new cold rolling mill, new roll grinders, extensive upgrades of anneal and pickling lines to support the new rolling mill, a new temper mill and the expansion of the melt shop building to add a 400 metric ton crane. The expansion presents NAS with the opportunity to counter subsidized imports. The project also increases NAS’ total capacity by 200,000 tons annually, a 20% growth in production.
“We are proud to lead America’s stainless steel economy, support our national security with our production and create great jobs for our region. Our latest expansion will bring more clean, sustainable and American-made stainless to consumers and directly compete with the subsidized imports of stainless,” said Cristobal Fuentes, NAS CEO. “NAS appreciates the steadfast partnership of Kentucky’s federal, state and local leaders who made today’s announcement possible, including Gov. Andy Beshear and Sen. Mitch McConnell. Our parent company, Acerinox – one of the largest producers of stainless in the world – was eager to further invest in Kentucky to demonstrate its commitment to our customers and the U.S. market and because our workforce meets and exceeds all goals every year.”
As part of the Acerinox Group of companies, NAS is a Delaware general partnership with Stainless Steel Invest Inc. as its managing general partner. NAS is situated on 1,600 acres in Carroll County. Founded in 1990, NAS has become the largest, fully integrated stainless steel producer in the United States and remains focused on being the leading producer of high-quality stainless steel in the Western Hemisphere.
NAS offers a full range of stainless flat including slabs, billets, plate, sheet and strip, as well as long products including wire, rods, angles and rebar. All of NAS’ production lines are located at one site, which allows the company to avoid inherent delays that are common in mills.
In 2016, NAS was awarded the Corporate Investment & Community Impact (CiCi) Award from Trade & Industry Development magazine for a $150 million expansion in Carroll County that created 36 full-time jobs.
NAS’ growth builds on the state’s strength in metals, an industry that has announced more than 3,100 full-time jobs for Kentucky residents during the Beshear administration behind over $2.5 billion in new investment. The commonwealth’s metals industry has nearly 250 active facilities and employs over 27,600 Kentuckians.