Arkansas: The Beating Heart of America’s Steel Comeback

November 18, 2025

As Prepared for Delivery - November 18, 2025

Click to watch highlights from this keynote on YouTube.

It’s great to be here with the Arkansas Chamber of Commerce, surrounded by people who understand what it means to build … to work … and to believe in the future.

Thank you to Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders for her leadership and vision, and to Randy Zook, everyone here at the Arkansas State Chamber, Hugh McDonald, and Clint O’Neal for what you do every single day to make this such an incredible state for business.

You know, I’ve been to a lot of places in my career, but every time I come to Arkansas, I can’t help but smile.

Because there’s something about Arkansas you feel the moment you arrive. Not loud. Not flashy. Just real. Solid. Grounded. This is a place that knows who it is. Hard work means something here. Family matters here. Faith matters here.

And you know what? The future matters here, too.

Because this is where America’s next century of steel is being forged.

Arkansas is a fantastic place to do business—I don’t need to tell you that. But here’s what I will tell you: it isn’t just a great place to do business because of the laws, or the logistics, or the incentives … though you do those things right, no question.

Arkansas is a great place to do business because of the people. Hard-working. Humble. Smart. And loyal. The kind of people who make things happen … make them happen fast … and also make them last.

Let me put it this way: if every state did business the way Arkansas does, this whole country would be running on steel … and common sense.

At U. S. Steel, we’re delighted to call Arkansas home to one of the most dynamic chapters in our 124-year…nearly 125-year…. history.

Think about it: just a few years ago, people thought the American steel industry’s best days were behind it. They said we couldn’t compete. They said we couldn’t innovate. They said we couldn’t grow. We were yesterday’s news … an industry of the past.

Well, they need to take a trip to Mississippi County. Because that’s where the American steel comeback is happening—right now.

Actually, not just the steel comeback … the American comeback, period.

Think about it…

U. S. Steel has invested $7 billion in Arkansas—with billions more on the way.

We’ve created nearly 5,000 jobs here.

Built relationships with more than 500 vendors.

Paid more than $45 million in state and local taxes.

That’s why downtown Osceola—and all of Mississippi County—feels like it’s booming. Because it is!

Because when steel thrives, everything around it thrives.

And that’s exactly what’s happening here in Arkansas.

This state has become the beating heart of America’s steel industry. Mississippi County, Arkansas, is now the number-one steel-producing county in the entire United States.

Did you know that? Number one! Not somewhere in Indiana. Not Alabama. Not even Pennsylvania … home of the Steelers!

Arkansas!

We are U. S. Steel. So, building steel is what we do. But building community is who we are.

In 2024 alone, U. S. Steel invested over $2.5 million in Arkansas schools, hospitals, first responders, and community programs.

Real impact. Real people.

One project stands out—our $1 million gift to the local hospital. It helped move the Emergency Department, replace the roof, repair the emergency room, and build a new helipad. When a family needs care fast, those seconds matter.

We’re investing in kids, too. With Arkansas Northeastern College, hundreds of local children join free summer camps every year—baseball, robotics, cooking, music. It’s opportunity in action.

And this year, we teamed up with the Memphis Grizzlies for a “Read to Achieve” rally. Fifteen hundred students packed the Osceola gym—reading, cheering, laughing. The Grizzlies mascot had them roaring. That’s the sound of a future being built.

Each Thanksgiving, they deliver full meals—turkey, sides, dessert and all—to families across Osceola. More than a thousand so far.

Through our “Work Here, Live Here” program, over a hundred families have bought or built their first homes. Young couples. First mortgages. New beginnings.

Because at U. S. Steel, when we invest in facilities … we’re also investing in families, futures, and faith in what’s possible.

Now, all of this success didn’t happen by accident. It happened because we believed in partnership—and not just within Arkansas, but across the globe.

Our partnership with Nippon Steel is the most significant in U. S. Steel’s history. Together, we’re combining Japanese craftsmanship with American grit—Arkansas grit!—to create something extraordinary.

We now have some 50 Nippon Steel experts working side by side with our teams across the country. And they’re not visitors anymore. They’re colleagues. They’re your new neighbors, right here in Arkansas, too.

This partnership will accelerate innovation, protect jobs, and strengthen our nation’s economic and national security.

It’s about building the best steel in the world—right here in the United States—and ensuring that America leads for the next hundred years.

A huge part of this story is happening right here in Arkansas, at Big River 2.

You know, in 2021 we completed our purchase of Big River Steel in Osceola—then the most technologically advanced mill in America.

We decided soon thereafter we were going to need to build a new mill. We searched far and wide for the perfect site … one that combined a friendly business climate … with a strategic location … with an outstanding local population.

And guess where we decided was the best place to build this new mill?

Literally next to Big River Steel.

Enter Big River 2, which opened for business this year. Big River 2 started up in 28 months. This is the quickest startup of any 3 million ton greenfield site in the history of the North American steel industry.

Big River 2 represents the largest private investment in Arkansas history. It’s also the largest investment in U. S. Steel’s history. Like Big River One, it’s one of the cleanest, most advanced steel mills anywhere in the world. Together, these two mills form Big River Steel Works. Big River is now the largest flat roll mini-mill complex in North America.

Speaking of Big River, I’d be remiss if I didn’t call out Dan Brown, U. S. Steel’s EVP of Advanced Technology Steelmaking and COO of Big River Steel Works. Dan’s a Pittsburgh guy by birth ... but spend a little time in Mississippi County and you start to hear the whispers: “He’s gone native.” And honestly? They might be right.

Dan has led Big River through major growth with grit, steadiness, and a whole lot of heart. Our teams trust him .... I trust him... and U. S. Steel is stronger because of him.

At Big River, with Dan’s leadership, we’re pioneering new technologies and products that will define the future, like lightweight electrical steels which power everything from electric vehicles to renewable energy grids.

This is smart, sustainable manufacturing … the steel of the future, made in Arkansas.

And it’s not just about the technology. It’s about the people behind it—men and women who are using AI, robotics, and data analytics not to replace jobs, but to make them safer and stronger.

So, where do we go from here?

For us, it’s simple: our Main Thing is delivering on our investment commitments.

“Our Main Thing is simple—deliver $14 billion in capital investments, on time, on budget, by the book, and built to last.”

So, how are we going to do that?

First…

A Direct Reduction plant here in the United States. Next-generation, low-carbon ironmaking. Efficient. Modern. American. Producing the high-purity iron needed for the strongest, cleanest, most consistent steel in the world.

Second…

New capacity to produce grain-oriented, high-quality electrical steel—the kind America needs for transformers, electric motors, and critical energy and industrial systems.

Together, these two projects represent another $3 billion investment in America’s future—advanced, low-carbon, high-performance steelmaking built right here.

This is energy security. This is industrial strength. This is American independence.

And here’s the truth I feel every time I walk these floors: every beam, every coil, every job here carries the fingerprints of hope…the proof that faith and work still build America.

I think of 2026 as a pivotal year.

By then, Big River 2 will be humming at full capacity. The Nippon Steel partnership will be fully integrated. And the story we’re writing here in Arkansas will be recognized around the world as a model for sustainable, profitable, purpose-driven manufacturing.

From Osceola to Pittsburgh to Tokyo, people will look to Arkansas and say, “That’s how you do it.”

That’s how you grow responsibly.
That’s how you take care of your people.
That’s how you build for the next 125 years.

Oh, I know … there is noise in the world right now—we all hear it. Politics. Media. Outrage. Everyone telling you who’s right and who’s wrong. But here’s the truth:

Work cuts through noise.
Work is clarity.
Work is contribution.

When you build something real, you don’t have to defend your impact.

And Arkansas stands on its work.

So Arkansas … once again, thank you. You welcomed us. You worked with us. You helped us make history.

And make no mistake: the success we’re celebrating today belongs to you.

Your spirit, your work ethic, your faith in the future … that’s what makes us happy to be your partner.

We’re here to stay … and we’re here to grow. Because you have believed in us.

And we believe in Arkansas!

Thank you.