$2.5B aluminum mill project planned for Lowndes County

A special session of the legislature on Wednesday will address an incentive package for a $2.5 billion aluminum mill development project in Lowndes County, according to multiple sources.

In an official press release issued Monday morning, Gov. Tate Reeves announced a Legislative special session. He said the project is expected to include a $2.5 billion initial investment and create more than 1,000 jobs with an average annual salary of $93,000.

"Mississippi's economy is firing on all cylinders and this game-changing investment is bringing a thousand high-paying jobs to our state," Reeves said. "One of my top priorities will always be to raise the per capita wages of Mississippians. This historic economic development deal does exactly that and will have a remarkable impact on communities across Mississippi."

State Sen. Chuck Younger told The Dispatch Monday afternoon that the special session was to vote on an incentive package for an aluminum mill.

"I’m going to vote for it, or I’ll commit suicide," Younger joked.

According to a Monday Tweet by Reeves, this would be the largest economic development project in Mississippi's history.

Officials from the Golden Triangle Development LINK — the region's economic development organization — said they would not comment on the project until after Wednesday's legislative special session.

An entity named Aluminum Dynamics LLC filed organizing papers with the Mississippi Secretary of State's office on Oct. 26. The registered officer of the company is Steel Dynamics Vice President and Treasurer Richard Poinsatte. SDI, which already operates a steel mill in western Lowndes County, is headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The LINK, which serves a three county area, has been instrumental in more than $7 billion in investment and the creation of more than 8,000 jobs for the region.

District 41 State Rep. Kabir Karriem told The Dispatch the local legislative delegation had a closed-door meeting with LINK officials on Monday to discuss the details of the project.

"If everything that I’ve been told is factual, it's going to be really big for the Golden Triangle, in particular, Lowndes County," Karriem said late Monday afternoon, though he would not confirm any other details of the project.

Speculation around the pending announcement began in earnest in July when SDI announced its plan to construct and operate a 650,000-ton, low-carbon, recycled aluminum flat-rolled mill somewhere in the Southeastern United States.

According to that release, the mill will produce finished metal alloy products serving industries such as beverage packaging, automotive, and other common alloy industrial sectors. At the time, the mill was expected to begin operations in the first quarter of 2025.

"We are incredibly excited to announce this meaningful growth opportunity, which is aligned with our existing business and operational expertise," SDI Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer Mark. D. Millett said in July of the company's venture into aluminum. "We have intentionally grown with our customer's needs, providing efficient, sustainable supply-chain solutions for the highest quality products. Thus far, this has primarily been achieved within the carbon steel industry — however, a significant number of our carbon flat-rolled steel customers are also consumers and processors of aluminum flat-rolled products."

Golden Triangle Development LINK representatives CEO Joe Max Higgins, COO Meryl Fisackerly and Vice President of Economic Development Betsy Young will attend the session Wednesday, according to The LINK's press release.

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