[bigpicture]

> Sure, big old U.S. Steel is behind the times, but that's true for any industry.

U.S. Steel operates integrated mills, which make steel from raw materials. "Mini-mills" make steel using electric arc blast furnaces to recycle existing steel.

If you need very high quality steel, you have to get it from an integrated mill. Everyone else can use the recycled stuff. The real benefit that you are talking about is the fact that recycled steel quality is improving enough to be useful in more applications.

PS - U.S. Steel is converting their Alabama mill to an electric arc blast furnace (they may have finished by now).

[hexane360]

>If you need very high quality steel, you have to get it from an integrated mill.

This just isn't true anymore. Process control has improved a lot since EAF mills were first created.

EAF mills also provide more flexibility because they can make much smaller batches. This allows for more niche alloys to become accessible.