Processing 400 000 tonnes of steel scrap in the Mojave Desert

The US is busy ramping up domestic metals production and recycling with new capacity nationwide. An interesting project – the Mojave Micro Mill – is arising in the remote outback of sunny California.

If you drive two-and-a-half hours northeast from Los Angeles, you find yourself in the bone-dry Mojave Desert, where temperatures easily reach 50 degrees Celsius. Not exactly the first location that comes to mind for recycling steel scrap.

And yet, it is right here in this vast and remote area – some 35 kilometres from Edwards Air Force Base – where a modern steel mill is rising from the ground. Since March 2025, teams have been working around the clock to bring the Mojave Micro Mill to life.

SMOOTH START

‘So far so good,’ says Mark Olson, vp of mill operations at Pacific Steel Group (PSG), the company behind the Micro Mill. ‘We are eight months into construction. The project is progressing well and is currently on schedule for start-up in mid 2027,’ he tells Recycling International.

Founded in 2014, PSG is a major steel maker with plants and facilities throughout the western United States. It provides steel bars for concrete, preassembled reinforcing bar (rebar) cages, and post-tension cables for residential, commercial and industrial construction.

A FIRST IN 50 YEARS

PSG sees the mill as a revolutionary project, poised to rewrite expectations for US steelmaking. The company has invested US$ 600 million (EUR 510 million) in the plant. It is at the very least an ambitious project as it is the first steel mill to be built in California in more than 50 years.

Described by experts as a fusion of advanced manufacturing, renewable energy and environmental performance, the facility represents a new model for sustainable domestic steel production. PSG is breaking away from traditional steelmaking dominated by energyintensive blast furnaces running on fossil fuels, which accounts for a major share of global carbon emissions.

The Mojave Micro Mill is an electric arc furnace mill that melts and recasts recycled steel scrap into rebar, the backbone of concrete structures like bridges, highways and high-rise buildings. Annual production of rebar is projected to reach 380 000 to 450 000 tonnes once fully operational.

CLEAN ENERGY MEETS STEELMAKING

Perhaps the most striking innovation of the Mojave project is its extensive use of on-site and nearby renewable energy. Roughly one-third of the 700 000 m2 site is planned for solar panel energy storage, providing electricity directly to the mill’s electric furnaces. All made possible thanks to the region’s abundant sunshine.

By combining local solar generation with wind power and energy storage, the mill aligns with green state California’s broader climate goals, focused on cleaner industrial processes and lower emissions across key sectors.

ECONOMIC BOOST

Beyond its environmental ambitions, the Mojave Micro Mill is a major economic investment. The facility is already providing 450 jobs and that is expected to grow to up to 1 200 jobs by the time the mill is up and running. State support – including a multi-million-dollar tax credit – reflects the project’s significance for regional economic development and workforce growth.

PSG hopes the mill will reduce reliance on steel imports by processing scrap metal sourced locally. Currently, California ships much of its scrap from LA to Asia, and imports finished steel products. The Mojave facility aims to close this loop, keeping more of the steel production cycle within California.

The Mojave Micro Mill will source scrap in a 300-400 km radius. ‘There is an abundance of scrap and recyclers in the greater Los Angeles area,’ notes Olson. ‘Many scrap companies interested in supplying the new steel mill have reached out to PSG.’ Any scrap supplier contracts signed yet? ‘It’s too early for that,’ says Olson.

‘Later this year, we will determine our scrap supplies through supply contracts.’ ‘We will begin our ramp-up period by July 2027 and expect to be at full capacity in early 2028 using approximately 410 000 tonnes of scrap annually.’

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