Steelmaker Hertha is moving forward with construction of its new Conroe facility, a $100 million plant designed to produce high-purity iron and steel using a proprietary single-step process. Once fully operational, the plant is expected to turn out approximately 30 tons of steel and iron per day, relying on domestic feedstock. The company positions the facility as a lower-cost, lower-emission alternative to conventional steelmaking, with potential implications for U.S. manufacturing supply chains and industrial demand.
Hertha reports that its single-step blast furnace technology can cut iron and steel production costs by about 25% compared with traditional blast furnaces. By integrating multiple stages of the conventional process into a single system, the plant aims to reduce both operating expenses and environmental impacts. The company also expects the facility to deliver magnet-grade, high-purity iron, targeting end users that require specialized inputs for advanced manufacturing.
The Conroe plant, which Hertha has named Chalyx, is anticipated to come online late next year. According to the company, production of magnet-grade, high-purity iron is scheduled to begin in early 2028, as operations ramp up and the facility transitions from initial output to full-scale manufacturing. By 2030, Hertha projects that Chalyx will meet roughly 25% of total U.S. demand for high-purity iron, signaling a planned shift in sourcing away from foreign suppliers.
CV Engineering is serving as Hertha’s engineering, procurement and construction partner on the Chalyx project. The EPC scope encompasses design and delivery of the plant’s core systems, including the specialized blast furnace technology. This partnership is intended to translate Hertha’s process innovation into a full-scale, commercially viable industrial asset in Conroe.
Capital for the plant includes a $65 million equity investment from the U.S. government, providing a substantial portion of the project’s funding. Kelly Loeffler, administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, appeared at the groundbreaking and emphasized that the SBA is prioritizing efforts to reshore U.S. manufacturing. The government support comes against a backdrop in which approximately 94% of the world’s high-purity iron production is currently concentrated in China, underscoring the strategic rationale for domestic capacity.
As work progresses in Conroe, the Chalyx plant represents a notable example of new industrial investment aimed at expanding U.S. production of critical materials. If Hertha’s cost and emissions claims are realized at scale, the facility could influence how industrial users source high-purity iron, while also highlighting the role of public equity capital in accelerating advanced manufacturing projects.
