U.S. Steel will begin the process to restart its second blast furnace at Granite City Works, the company announced late on Thursday.
“After several months of carefully analyzing customer demand, we made the decision to restart a blast furnace,” David Burritt, President and CEO of U. S. Steel, said in a statement. “Steel remains a highly competitive and highly cyclical industry, but we are confident in our ability to safely and profitably operate the mill to meet 2026 demand. We look forward to partnering with all stakeholders, including the United Steelworkers and elected officials, to ensure a safe and efficient start-up and to discuss support for Granite City Works.”
The company, now owned by Japanese company Nippon, said it expects to reignite the “B” blast furnace in the first half of 2026, which has been shuttered since fall 2023. It did not address long-term concerns about the Metro East mill’s fate beyond 2027.
Thursday’s decision by U.S. Steel will provide a short-term win for the steelworkers, who’ve long been critical of the company’s decision not to produce steel in Granite City. The company said it expects to hire 400 new workers to operate the furnace.
Leadership from the local chapter of the United Steelworkers union could not be immediately reached for comment.
Michael Pool, a steelworker who works on the galvanizing line of the mill, said he hopes Thursday’s announcement can lead to a brighter future for Granite City Works.
“It's way better news than what we've heard in the last year — for sure,” he said. “This is the best news we've had. Operating those furnaces is very awesome for our facility.”
The steelworkers in Granite City had been caught in the middle of Nippon’s nearly $15 billion takeover of Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel. While most other facilities had been protected through 2035 by an agreement negotiated by the federal government, Granite City Works only received protection for two years. That led a number of people to question if the mill was destined for permanent closure.
“I'm hoping that, with this opportunity, we will be able to prove we can continue to make high quality steel and it'll show the value to Nippon and to the U.S. Steel Corporation — that we can be a valuable asset and continue production for as long as we possibly can,” Pool said.
U.S. Steel idled its first blast furnace in Granite City in 2019 and idled the second in 2023. Since then, steelworkers have been processing steel slabs shipped in from other locations with roughly 900 employees.
Earlier this year, the company made plans to stop shipping in those slabs. However, that decision was quickly reversed after an outcry in the community.
“I’m encouraged by the decision to restart one of the furnaces and bring back the workers — it shows that advocacy and collective action make a difference,” U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski D-Springfield, said in a statement. “While this is good news for production on a temporary basis, we need more than short-term fixes. We need a long-range commitment and investment that ensures the skilled workers of Granite City have the future and assurances they’ve earned.
In addition to having a much shorter window of protection from further idling, closing or selling, Nippon announced plans to invest $11 billion in other mills across the country — excluding Granite City Works.
In its statement, U.S. Steel did not address how much money it would invest in Granite City in order to restart the second blast furnace.
“This development is not only an industrial achievement, but to many, it feels like a Christmas miracle,” State Sen. Erica Harriss, R-Glen Carbon and State Rep. Amy Elik, R-Godfrey, said in a joint statement. “The decision acknowledges the strength of Granite City Works, our community, and the future of American steel. Throughout the challenges, laborers have continued to show resilience and adaptability, proving the extraordinary dedication of this workforce.”
