Nucor Corp., Charlotte, N.C., broke ground on March 7 on a $750-million facility in St. James Parish, La. Nucors chairman and CEO, Dan DiMicco (second from right), spoke at the event, along with Gov. Bobby Jindal (at podium) and Stephen Moret (second from left), economic development secretary for Louisiana. The facility will produce direct reduced iron, which is used by Nucors steel mills, along with recycled scrap, to produce steel products such as sheet and special bar quality steel. Nucor says it will build one plant initially, but has permits to build and operate two plants with a combined annual production of 5.5 million tons. The facility is the first stage of a multi-phase plan that may include a coke plant, blast furnace, pellet plant and steel mill.

The Louisiana Dept. of Transportation and Development broke ground on a $25.7-million project to widen Interstate-12 from four to six lanes at a ceremony in Slidell, La., on March 2. James Construction LLC, Baton Rouge, began preconstruction in January, and is set to finish in summer 2012. Gov. Bobby Jindal called the project critical and added that it is funded entirely with surplus money from 2008and builds on our total $220-million investment in I-12. In St. Tammany Parish alone, the Jindal administration has invested $122.2 million in transportation projects. Statewide, he has announced $3.6 billion in state and federal funds for transportation and road projects.