Metals & Minerals Industry Upbeat on $45 Billion Project Spending in 2011

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The March 2011 update of Industrial Info's North American Industrial Project Spending Index shows that the Metals & Minerals Industry is up 10.17% year over year for the value of confirmed project activity. Currently, Industrial Info is tracking almost $45 billion worth of capital and maintenance projects scheduled to begin construction in 2011 compared to $40.80 billion at the same time last year.

Click on the image at right to view a chart showing the breakdown of project value by region 2010 versus 2011 for the Metals & Minerals Industry.

As can be seen in the chart, project activity is up this year in several regions, including the U.S. Southeast, Atlantic Canada and Quebec. In Quebec, for example, the value of project activity has quadrupled from last year. Industrial Info is tracking 22 projects including gold mines and aluminum smelter construction. The value of these projects is about $5.3 billion.

The Metals & Minerals Industry in North America is experiencing growth in project activity, led by mining and steel project development. Resource demand is strong overseas, especially from China, and this is driving mining project activity in North America. Demand for mined products, including metallurgical coal, potash and iron ore, is opening export opportunities for those with export terminal capacity. This, in turn, has ignited a series of planned new shipping terminals on the West Coast.

The steel manufacturing sector has recovered somewhat, currently registering around 70% capacity utilization, and steel manufacturers are spending money on capital and maintenance expenditures this year. In one of the largest active steel mill projects in North America, ATI Allegheny Ludlum Corporation (Natrona Heights, Pennsylvania) is under way with a $1.6 billion addition of an 84-inch hot steel strip mill addition at the Brackenridge steel mill. The company has completed site preparation and building demolition. ATI is currently looking for a general contractor to begin the construction of the building.

The North American Industrial Project Spending Index is a monthly indicator comparing the total investment value of the current year to the previous year, based on actual project construction starts, in order to get a measure of growth or contraction in the industrial market. The index takes into consideration project-spending activity in 12 vertical industries: Power; Terminals; Oil & Gas Transmission; Oil & Gas Production; Alternative Fuels; Petroleum Refining; Chemical Processing; Metals & Minerals; Pulp, Paper, & Wood; Food & Beverage; Industrial Manufacturing; and Pharmaceutical & Biotech.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. IIR's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.