Gerdau Whitby Steel Mill
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Gerdau Whitby Steel Mill, also known as Co-Steel Lasco, is a steel plant in Whitby, Ontario, Canada that operates electric arc furnace (EAF) technology.
Location
The map below shows the exact location of the plant in Whitby, Ontario, Canada:
- Location: 1 Gerdau Court, L1N 5T1, Whitby, Ontario, Canada
- Coordinates (WGS 84): 43.856461, -78.908997 (exact)
Background
The Gerdau Whitby Steel Mill began operating in 2000. Gerdau acquired the mill in 2002 from company Lasco.[1] In 2009 the plant laid off 180 employees and cut production in half due to economic downturns. As of 2020, the plant has not fully ramped back up to full capacity and is still struggling with issues due to a lack of hiring between 2009 and 2013.[2] In 2020, The Canadian government announced plans to invest $20 million on an $81.2 million project that Gerdau hasdplanned for its mills in Whitby and Cambridge, Ontario.[3] In 2023, Gerdeau worked with Danieli & C. S.p.A to replace its existing EAF with a Danieli ultra-high power (UHP) FastArc furnace, which increased capacity to 1.2 million tonnes per annum.
Worker Safety
In 2020, the company was fined 115 thousand CAD for accidents and worker injuries. In particular, for an accident where falling material injured two workers because proper overhead protection was not in place.[4]
In 2011 there was an explosion at the site, in 2019 there were 2 fires within 2 months of eachother, and in 2020 there was a fire in a berm that contained metal shavings.[5]
Ownership Tree
This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.
Plant Details
Table 1: General Plant Details
| Start date | Workforce size |
|---|---|
| 1964[6] | 600[7] |
Table 2: Ownership and Parent Company Information
| Parent company | Parent company PermID | Parent GEM entity ID | Owner | Owner company PermID | Owner GEM entity ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gerdau SA [98.2%] | 5000004542 [98.2%] | E100001010270 [98.2%] | Gerdau Ameristeel Corp [100%][6] | 4295861819 | E100001010298 [100%] |
Table 3: Process and Products
| Steel product category | Steel products | Steel sector end users | ISO 14001 | ISO 50001 | Responsible steel | Main production equipment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| semi-finished, finished rolled[8][9] | angle, rebar, channel, flat, bar, beams, steel billets, piling[8][9] | building and infrastructure, steel packaging, tools and machinery, transport[10][11] | 2023-10-11[12] | unknown[12] | unknown | EAF |
Table 4: Plant-level Crude Steel Production Capacities (thousand tonnes per annum)
| Capacity operating status1 | Electric arc furnace steelmaking capacity | Nominal crude steel capacity (total) |
|---|---|---|
| operating | 1200[13] | 1200[13] |
Table 5: Actual Plant-level Crude Steel Production by Year (thousand tonnes per annum)
| Year | EAF production | Other/unknown steel production |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | unknown | unknown |
| 2020 | unknown | unknown |
| 2021 | unknown | unknown |
| 2022 | unknown | unknown |
| 2023 | unknown | unknown |
| 2024 | unknown | – |
Unit Details
Table 6: Electric Arc Furnace Details
| Unit name | Status | Start date | Furnace manufacturer and model | Current capacity (ttpa) | Current size (tonnes) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| unknown EAF (1) | operating[14] | 2023[15] | Danieli UHP FastArc[15][15] | 1200[13] | 137.0[13] |
Table 7: Electric Arc Furnace Feedstock Details
| Unit name | Scrap-based | % scrap |
|---|---|---|
| unknown EAF (1) | yes[16] | 100.00[16] |
Articles and Resources
Additional data
To access additional data, including an interactive map of steel plants, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Iron and Steel Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
References
- ↑ Pfeiffer, Ryan (2014-10-11). "Gerdau mill in Whitby celebrates 50th anniversary". Durham Region. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Catto, John (November 4, 2020). "Standing Up for Steel at Gerdau in Whitby, ON". United Steelworkers. Retrieved November 11, 2025.
- ↑ Toto, Deanne (July 29, 2019). "Canadian government invests in Gerdau steel mills". Recycling Today. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ↑ "Steel plant injuries result in $115K fine for Ontario company". OHS Canada. 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2021-10-14.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Follert, Jillian (June 13, 2020). "Fire at Whitby steel mill sends heavy black smoke into the air Friday evening". Durhamregion.com. Retrieved November 10, 2025.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20160820043121/http://www.durhamregion.com:80/news-story/4908173-gerdau-mill-in-whitby-celebrates-50th-anniversary/. Archived from the original on 2016-08-20.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://usw.ca/standing-up-for-steel-at-gerdau-in-whitby-on/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Products". Archived from the original on 2025-10-15.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20220120013018/https://www2.gerdau.com/gerdau-locations. Archived from the original on 2022-01-20.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20240125061725/https://www2.gerdau.com/. Archived from the original on 2024-01-25.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://www2.gerdau.com/market-applications/manufacturing.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 12.0 12.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20220210174258/http://www2.gerdau.com/products-and-resources/certifications. Archived from the original on 2022-02-10.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 https://www.recyclingtoday.com/news/gerdau-danieli-steel-melting-recycling-equipment-whitby-ontario-canada/.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://imis.aist.org/store/detail.aspx?id=PR-RU2023-2.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 https://web.archive.org/web/20240119004341/https://www.aist.org/news/steel-news/2023/december/11-15-december-2023/ontario-mill-switches-on-new-electric-arc-furnace. Archived from the original on 2024-01-19.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 16.0 16.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20240905153043/https://gsn.gerdau.com/our-process. Archived from the original on 2024-09-05.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help)
