WHEELING, W.Va., May 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Jefferson County (Ohio)
Commissioners signed an agreement on May 20 that will provide Wheeling-
Pittsburgh Steel Corporation (Nasdaq: WPSC) with a 67 percent, 10-year, tax
abatement for its Electric Arc Furnace. The agreement is the result of
negotiations between Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel and Jefferson County, the
Village of Mingo Junction and the Indian Creek School District.
The Enterprise Zone tax abatement on personal property will reduce
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel's taxes by $7.5 million in the aggregate on the EAF
investment over the 10 years that it is in effect.
"I would like to thank Jefferson County's Commissioners for their timely
action, as well as Mayor John Fabian, Joseph Pierro, Village Administrator,
and the Mingo Junction Village Council," said Harry Page, Wheeling-Pittsburgh
Steel Vice President of Engineering, Technology and Metallurgy. Page, along
with Don Menovich, Property and Tax Accounting Director, led Wheeling-
Pittsburgh Steel's negotiating team.
"Our discussion reflected the participants understanding of the serious
issues that have faced the steel industry and the importance of reaching an
agreement that will help ensure Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel will complete its
evolution into a steel producer using the most modern technology in the
world," Page added.
Page noted that Progress Alliance, Jefferson County's economic development
agency, and Ohio Governor Bob Taft's Development Department provided crucial
assistance throughout the company's discussions. Also providing support for
the agreement was U.S. Rep. Bob Ney.
The Electric Arc Furnace will utilize a continuous steelmaking design and
be responsible for about half the company's raw steel when it is fully
operational during peak business conditions. During business downturns or when
scrap prices are high, the EAF could account for 100 percent of the company's
raw steel production. Construction of the EAF, which is located at Wheeling
Pittsburgh Steel's Mingo Junction (OH) Plant, is scheduled for completion this
fall.
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation is a metal products company with
3,100 employees in facilities located in Steubenville, Mingo Junction,
Yorkville, and Martins Ferry, OH; Beech Bottom and Follansbee, WV; and
Allenport, PA. The company's Wheeling Corrugating Division has 12 plants
located throughout the United States.
Statements in this release that express a belief, expectation or
intention, as well as those which are not historical fact, are forward
looking. They involve a number of risks and uncertainties, which may cause
actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements. For
more information about these risks and uncertainties, please refer to
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corporation's annual report on Form 10-K for the period
ending December 31, 2003, and other filings, with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
SOURCE Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.wpsc.com
Company News On-Call:
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/967451.html
CONTACT:
Jim Kosowski of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel
Corporation, +1-304-234-2440
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