Nucor joins UN’s carbon-free energy compact

Nucor Corp., Charlotte, North Carolina, announced it is joining the United Nation’s (UN’s) 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy Global Compact. Nucor is the first major industrial company to join the global effort, which aims to accelerate the decarbonization of the world’s electricity systems.

“For more than five decades, Nucor has been built on the sustainable model of producing steel with a low carbon footprint by recycling scrap metal into new steel and steel products. As the first major industrial company in the world to join the compact, we will build on this legacy by taking a leadership role in the world's transition to 24/7 clean energy,” says Leon Topalian, Nucor's chair, president and CEO. “In order for us to achieve a carbon-free energy future while also meeting the growing demand for energy, it is critical that we embrace all forms of clean, zero-carbon energy sources, from wind, solar and hydro, to nuclear power.”

To further its commitment, Nucor says it is working with electricity suppliers to access 24/7 clean energy at the company's steel mills. It is also actively investing in a number of projects to accelerate the transition to clean energy. For example, in April, Nucor announced a strategic investment in NuScale Power Corp., a Portland, Oregon-based developer of small modular reactor nuclear plants. Nucor believes this technology presents an opportunity to develop a “safe, modern, zero-carbon nuclear energy future.”

Formed in response to the need for decarbonization across the global economy, the compact is comprised of energy buyers, energy suppliers, governments, system operators, solutions providers, investors and other organizations. With the goal of adopting, enabling and advancing the transition to a zero-carbon electrical grid, the compact creates a set of principles and actions that stakeholders can commit to in order to drive systematic change.

“We applaud the United Nations, Sustainable Energy for All, Google and the other signatories for their leadership on this issue,” Topalian says. “A sustainability movement is expanding around the world [as] we have never seen before, and as one of the largest recyclers on the planet, Nucor is in a position of strength to set the bar for the rest of the world.”