Nucor to buy solar energy, adds board member

Charlotte, North Carolina-based Nucor Corp. has announced a power purchase agreement for 250 megawatts of renewable energy from Sebree Solar LLC, a subsidiary of Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources LLC. Sebree Solar is a solar power installation in Henderson County, Kentucky, scheduled to begin construction this fall.

The steel for the first phase of the Sebree Solar will be sourced from the Nucor Gallatin mill in Ghent, Kentucky. Nucor Steel Gallatin also will be used for another NextEra solar project in Kentucky, according to the scrap-fed electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaker.

“We are delighted to work with NextEra Energy Resources, and to be a key material supplier to this important addition to the power grid in Kentucky where we have grown our presence considerably in recent years,” says Greg Murphy, executive vice president at Nucor.

“Our country’s energy transition will be built with steel and the steel it is built with should be produced sustainably. And while Nucor is already among the world’s cleanest and most sustainable steel producers, this agreement will enable us to further reduce our climate footprint and meet our goals for improvement.”

“Whether it’s electric vehicles or cutting-edge metals manufacturing, Kentucky is emerging as a national leader in creating the jobs of the future," Gov. Andy Beshear adds. "I look forward to Nucor’s continued success here and am happy to welcome NextEra Energy Resources to the commonwealth for what we hope will be another long and prosperous relationship.”

Nucor also has announced the election of Nicholas C. Gangestad as a board director effective Sept. 1. Gangestad currently serves as chief financial officer of Milwaukee-based Rockwell Automation Inc., an industrial automation technology provider.

“Nick is an accomplished executive who brings to the board over three decades of financial expertise and significant leadership experience with global companies,” Nucor President and CEO Leon J. Topalian says.