LIBERTY Steel Georgetown Rod Mill to Restart Operations
GFG Alliance (visit GFG Alliance) plans to restart the LIBERTY Steel Georgetown rod mill in Georgetown, South Carolina. The company expects the mill to resume production around mid‑January, bringing jobs and new capacity back online after a period of care and maintenance during the Covid‑19 downturn.
LIBERTY Steel Georgetown will support a strong order book and help clear a backlog of customer demand for wire rod in North America.
Integrated Production with LIBERTY Peoria Plant
To optimize output, LIBERTY will integrate Georgetown with its plant in Peoria, Illinois. The Peoria site will melt and cast billet, taking advantage of its additional melt capacity. Georgetown will then roll those billets into approximately 10,000 metric tons of finished rod per month.
Meanwhile, the LIBERTY Steel Georgetown rod mill team has implemented efficiency measures, including utility cost savings, rental equipment returns, and contractor reductions, to support profitability and a sustainable long‑term operating plan.
A Storied History of the Georgetown Rod Mill
The rod mill in Georgetown dates back to 1969, when German industrialist Willy Korf founded the site. At its peak, the plant employed around 1,500 people and passed through several owners, including the government of Kuwait in 1984 and International Steel Group in 2004.
In 2005, Lakshmi Mittal acquired the mill. It closed in 2009, then ArcelorMittal reopened it in 2011 before closing it again in May 2015. The Liberty House Group, part of GFG Alliance, bought the Georgetown steelworks in 2017 and has since worked to secure its long‑term future.
Part of GFG Alliance Restructuring and Market Recovery
The restart announcement forms part of a broader update from GFG Alliance on restructuring and refinancing progress across its global portfolio. LIBERTY Steel Group created a Restructuring and Transformation Committee (RTC) in May 2021 to focus on core profitable units and to stabilize operations after the Greensill collapse.
Chief Restructuring Officer Jeffrey Stein explained that the restart of the LIBERTY Steel Georgetown rod mill reflects stronger market conditions and rising infrastructure spending worldwide. Healthy steel demand and supportive U.S. trade measures, including Section 232 tariffs and quotas, create a more sustainable environment for domestic rod producers.
