Why We Need Domestic Steel Production

What runs the US economy?

Think about it... Ingenuity? Capitalism? Money? Heaven forbid, the government? Trade?

Well, all of those things play a role but the one thing that is most important is our electrical system. Without electricity everything grinds to a halt.

Think I'm stretching the truth? What happened during Hurricane Sandy? Or countless other instances of the electrical grid going down?

We go from a producing economy to a consuming economy in the snap of a finger. When the electricity is out, we consume whatever is available and then we go out an forage for more. But, no matter how you slice it, we aren't producing much, if anything.

A growing economy is based on producing things to be used for consumption. These things have to be invented, manufactured, shipped, sold and then consumed.

Take away the manufactured, shipped and sold parts and there will not be much in the invented and/or consumed areas.

Yes, we can survive without electricity. But we can not thrive. Thus the need to ensure electricity continues to be abundant to meet the demand for a Western, growing economy.

How does that happen though? Through the infrastructure, the grid if you will.

The United States relies of Large Power Transformers(LPTs) to move electricity from production to consumption. "Large power transformers are essential critical infrastructure to the electric grid..."

Unfortunately, the US is facing an antiquated base of these LPTs.

The Dept of Energy says "The average age of installed LPTs in the United States is approximately 38 to 40 years, with 70% of LPTs being 25 years or older. While the life expectancy of a power transformer varies depending on how it is used, aging power transformers are potentially subject to an increased risk of failure. "

But to replace a creaking LPT doesn't happen overnight! "If large power transformers are destroyed by a geomagnetic disturbance (GMD) electromagnetic pulse (EMP), cyber-attack, sabotage, severe weather, floods, or simply old age, parts or all of the electric grid could be down in a region for 6 months to 2 years. This is because the USA imports 85% of them, there is competition with other nations for limited production and raw materials such as special grade electrical steel, a high cost ranging from $2.5 to $10 million dollars (including transport/installation), and they are custom built, with long lead times to design, bid, manufacture, and deliver, with components depending on long foreign production and supply chains."

Let me highlight that, "Components depending on LONG FOREIGN PRODUCTION..."

We rely heavily on our electrical grid, which relies heavily on LPTs to run smoothly. Our average LPT is 40+ years old. Older LPTs have much higher possibility for failure. And lead times to replace LPTs can be as long as 2 years partly because we rely on foreign supply.

Even worse though is this:
"the United States has a limited domestic capacity to produce LPTs" Why is that?

Because "Electrical steel is the most critical component that has the greatest impact on the performance of the power transformer"
But who produces most of the needed steel?

"In 2009, China’s four companies produced 35% of the world’s electrical steel, the majority of which were consumed domestically.
The two U.S. producers accounted for 14% of the world’s electrical steel production."

Let that sink in for a second. To keep the US economy humming we are relying primarily on a country that literally just banned the letter "N" because of its subversiveness.

Folks, steel is too important to leave to the models of the "Free Trade" doctrinaires. I used to be one of those people too.

But reality is an eye-opener. Without Steel our ability to move electric current and volt from producer to consumer is a very risky endeavor. With a worst case scenario us having to beg our Chinese rivals for product.

Not a good scenario to consider.

http://energyskeptic.com/2015/power-transformers-that-take-up-to-2-years-to-build/

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/the-great-firewall-of-china-beijing-bans-more-words-including-my-emperor-lifelong-control-and-the-letter-n/articleshow/63170176.cms