LSU chancellor calls Hyundai Steel deal most comprehensive partnership in university history
Three-year partnership could bring millions in research funding to university
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Louisiana State University and Hyundai Steel Company signed a master research agreement that university leaders say represents the most comprehensive industry partnership in LSU’s history.
“The agreement represents the most comprehensive industry agreement partnership in LSU’s history,” LSU Executive Director and Chancellor Dr. Jim Dalton said.
The agreement, obtained by WAFB, goes in-depth on the logistics of how LSU and Hyundai Steel will collaborate.
“So what this agreement does is it lays out how we’ll share information, how we’ll share patents, how we’ll share intellectual property, and how we’ll work together,” Dalton said.
In March 2025, Hyundai Steel announced a $5.8 billion investment into Louisiana. The company plans to build an ultra-low carbon steel production mill in Donaldsonville.
Investment details
LSU’s Vice President for Research and Economic Development, Dr. Robert Twilley, said the investment Hyundai Steel will make in LSU remains to be seen.
“It has not been determined the final investment at this point. This research master agreement does not have the actual dollar amounts, that’s to come,” Twilley said.
The three-year agreement details that individual projects and funding will be set through separate task orders. LSU will own the research results while Hyundai gets long-term rights to use them and first dibs on licensing new inventions.
“We can talk about projects that go anywhere from $10,000 up to millions of dollars, and I think if you look over the 10-year timeline, you’ll be talking about $50-100 million dollars in research that might flow,” Dalton said.
Details on how many students the agreement will impact are unclear.
Industry challenges the university plans to help Hyundai Steel with a center around smart-factory and robotic technologies, manufacturing optimization, and the development of new performance materials in the steel space.
“A lot of this is building steel that is energy efficient. You know, we are looking for more energy-efficient ways of doing our manufacturing,” Twilley said.
Workforce development
River Parishes Community College is the lead trainer on the project. The college already has many of the programs in place for a career at the Hyundai steel plant or any other, including a Process Technology Glass Lab and Process Equipment Plant. They replicate the things students will see on a job site on day one. The goal is to keep Louisiana talent from moving out of state.
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