By ROBIN SHANNON

Staff Reporter

LAPLACE — Despite national economic concerns facing America’s future, officials with a North Carolina-based steel corporation said this week that Louisiana is still in the running for a $2 billion pig iron plant to be constructed in St. James Parish.

In a conference call Tuesday, Dan DiMicco, CEO of Nucor Corp., reaffirmed the company’s commitment to build a 4,000-acre manufacturing plant on a site south of La. Highway 3125 and east of La. Highway 70 in Convent, or a similar sized plot of land in Brazil. The steelmaker expects to have a final decision by the end of March.

Governor Bobby Jindal said Wednesday that the state is very optimistic about its chances of landing the facility. He said the final hurdle is permit approval from the Environmental Protection Agency.

“Everything is done on the state’s end,” Jindal said. “We are looking forward to this project coming to fruition.”

According to Nucor, the plant would produce pig iron, a raw ingredient in steel making. The initial phase of the plant, which could be completed by 2010, would employ 500 people with an average salary of $75,000. The company is looking at the possibility of up to three phases, which would bring even more jobs.

Nucor Environmental Affairs Manager Jeff Braun said the plant would use recycled materials and also produce its own electricity, with the possibility of some being sold back to Entergy’s power grid.