Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant — United States
Steel Plant in United States. Approximate location 33.235, -87.50812.
Steel PlantUnited StatesCO₂ estimate (modelled)
Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant is a steel plant in United States. Steel plants burn coal in blast furnaces or use electric arcs to melt scrap; in both cases the molten metal must be kept above 1,500°C and transferred through extensive hot piping and vessels. It is operated by Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Inc. It emits about 281,066 t CO₂e a year from Climate TRACE. That is 0.05% of the CO₂e from the 1,910 facilities in United States that have an emissions figure in IndustryAtlas.
Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-1567131.
Data status
Known source data
Calculated from the dataset
Not available
Source data, measured cross-checks and calculated values are kept separate. No confidence percentage is invented.
Similar facilities by modelled emissions
- Ege Steel Aliaga plant · 280,196 t CO₂e/yr · Türkiye
- Hyundai Steel Incheon steel plant · 276,367 t CO₂e/yr · South Korea
- Habas Aliaga steel plant · 286,486 t CO₂e/yr · Türkiye
- Heping Yueshen Steel Industry Co Ltd · 288,114 t CO₂e/yr · China
- Qian an Zhayi Steel Group Co Ltd · 289,077 t CO₂e/yr · China
Same Climate TRACE subsector; closest non-placeholder modelled CO₂e values. Russia and Belarus excluded.
Operating power plants within 50 km
- Holt Dam · Hydro · 47 MW · 6 km
- Bankhead Dam · Hydro · 54 MW · 29 km
- Westervelt Moundville Cogen · Waste · 13 MW · 33 km
PowerAtlas operating assets, ordered by great-circle distance from published coordinates.
Measured and modelled emissions reconciliation
This facility is linked to GHGRP ID 1003457 for reporting year 2023. The official source reports 199,797 t CO2; Climate TRACE models 281,066 t CO2e.
| Crosswalk check | Result |
|---|---|
| Modelled minus measured | 81,269 t |
| Difference as % of measured | 40.676% |
| Modelled / measured ratio | 1.40676 |
| Coordinate distance | 0.180 km |
| Name similarity | 100% |
Limits of this comparison
- Measured CO2 and modelled CO2e are not identical accounting constructs.
- The crosswalk is an entity match, not proof that reporting boundaries are identical.
- The reporting year is shown explicitly and values are not extrapolated to the current year.
Official GHGRP source · Download this reconciliation: CSV · JSON with provenance.
In context: how this facility compares
Subsector: iron-and-steel. As steel plant, it requires high process heat (typically 800–1500°C) for its core industrial operations, supplied by boilers, furnaces or direct combustion. Steel plants burn coal in blast furnaces or use electric arcs to melt scrap; in both cases the molten metal must be kept above 1,500°C and transferred through extensive hot piping and vessels.
Capacity & CO₂-intensity comparison computed from Climate TRACE industrial facilities data; sector role based on engineering reference.
What 281,066 t CO₂e a year looks like
This facility's estimated annual CO₂e (Climate TRACE, modelled) in everyday equivalents from the US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies calculator:
Equivalencies: US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies. Emissions: Climate TRACE.
Carbon cost and Scope 1 emissions
At its reported 281k t CO₂e/yr (Scope 1), Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant carries no domestic carbon price — and as a CBAM-covered product, its 281k t at the EU CBAM rate (€75/t) is €21.2M/yr of exposure on EU-bound exports. CBAM share rises from 2.5% (2026) to 100% by 2034. No domestic carbon price — but cement, steel, aluminium, fertilizer and hydrogen exported to the EU face CBAM at €75/t (rising to 100% by 2034).
Measured CO₂: 200k t/yr — verified GHGRP (reporting year 2023) (29% below the modelled estimate). Modelled estimate 281k t/yr (Climate TRACE), high-confidence match, cross-checked via the measured-vs-modelled dataset (n=711).
Carbon price: EU CBAM €75/t · EU ETS €85/t, September 10, 2026, refreshed live via Carbon Hub. CO₂: measured (GHGRP RY2023), cross-checked vs Climate TRACE. Indicative carbon value, not the cash bill — free allocation applies; not compliance advice.
Operator
Operated by Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Inc.
Local climate
Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant sits in a humid subtropical climate zone (Köppen Cfa), at 33.2°N in the northern hemisphere.
Köppen zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).
Site climate & environmental severity
This site sits in a moderately corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C3 — Medium), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.
In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1332 W/m² to ambient — roughly 1.02× the loss at a 20 °C reference. Reference-surface calculation at a 150 °C surface from WorldClim climate normals (ASTM C680 / ISO 12241) — an indicative per-climate comparison, not a measurement of this site’s specific equipment. Open method dataset: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20787408 (CC BY 4.0).
Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.
How it compares & nearby sites
Nearby industrial sites
- R. L. Zeigler Co., Inc. · Food & Beverage
- Gourmade Kitchen · Food & Beverage
- Sfmv Newco, Llc · Food & Beverage
- HUNT REFINING COMPANY · Chemical Plant · 190,016 t CO₂
- Hunt Tuscaloosa Refinery · Refinery · 472,980 t CO₂
- MERCEDES-BENZ US INTERNATIONAL INC · Other Manufacturing · 45,434 t CO₂
Location
Coordinates 33.235, -87.50812. View on OpenStreetMap.
Frequently asked questions
What type of facility is Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant?
Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant is a steel plant in United States. Steel plants burn coal in blast furnaces or use electric arcs to melt scrap; in both cases the molten metal must be kept above 1,500°C and transferred through extensive hot piping and vessels.
How much CO₂ does Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant emit?
The page uses about 281,066 t CO₂e/year from the open dataset It ranks #380 among facilities in United States by estimated CO₂.
Where is Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant located?
Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant is in United States at approximately 33.235, -87.50812.
Who operates Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa plant?
The operator recorded in the open dataset is Nucor Steel Tuscaloosa Inc.