Governor's Roundtable Brings Kentucky Metals Leaders to the Table

MI2 hosted its annual Governor's Roundtable at The Foundry in Frankfort on July 14, bringing together Governor Andy Beshear and leaders from across Kentucky's metals manufacturing industry. The event gathered roughly 40 attendees, including Kentucky Dept. of Workforce Development, Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, RJ Corman, AKFA, Novelis, Wieland, Schupan, Constellium, Tri-Arrows Aluminum, TungCo, Nucor, Logan Aluminum, Century Aluminum, North American Stainless, Southern Coil Solutions, Precision Strip, Bilstein Cold Rolled Steel, Murphy Construction Group, H&H Sheet Metal, Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, Office of Gov. Andy Beshear and Nucor, for a direct conversation on the state of the industry and the work ahead.

The session centered on an open discussion between the Governor and industry leaders about the challenges and opportunities facing Kentucky's metals sector, which accounts for $37.8 billion in economic output and 96,300 jobs statewide.

Discussion topics included:

- workforce pipeline development and partnership

- raw materials security and energy competitiveness

- recycling infrastructure and UBC recovery initiatives

Industry leaders raised specific industry concerns, and shared examples of how their companies are already addressing these challenges on the ground and what they need to continue this momentum on a statewide level. Governor Beshear responded directly to the group's input. The Governor was clear that this conversation is not a one-time check-in. He asked the group for specific deliverables by September - specific data, workforce numbers, and updates on materials recovery progress, so the state can act on what the industry is actually seeing rather than working from assumptions.

MI2 and member companies are working together to share information and work on continued initiatives with multiple state government cabinets.

For MI2, the roundtable reinforced why this kind of direct collaboration and partnership matters. Reflecting our public/private partnership structure, MI2 will continue to serve as a channel between member companies and leadership in state government, making sure the data and firsthand experience shared in rooms like this one translates into decisions that support Kentucky's metals industry and achieve our mission of making Kentucky the national destination for innovation in metals manufacturing.