7/31/2007
Gerdau Ameristeel Plays Starring Role In Construction Of New Gridiron For 'America's Team'

St. Paul Mill Provides 670 Tons Of Steel For The Dallas Cowboys' New

Stadium

TAMPA, FL, July 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - Gerdau Ameristeel (NYSE: GNA; TSX: GNA.TO) will play an important role in one of the biggest news items from the world of The National Football League. Keeping with grand Texas tradition, the new Dallas Cowboys stadium in Arlington, Texas, will be the largest domed structure in the world when completed, and Gerdau Ameristeel is instrumental in the construction.

Gerdau's threadbar steel, produced in its St. Paul, Minn. mill, is rolled for Dywidag Systems International, DSI, a global company based in Germany. DSI then supplies fabricated bars for various construction projects, including the Dallas Cowboys Stadium.

DSI has used 670 tons of Gerdau's D150 threadbar in the form of 40- to 60-feet soil nails that anchor the retaining wall of the facility. The nails are necessary because the playing field will sit 50 feet below ground.

"A lot of our steel products get smashed and rolled and turn out to be something obscure like a kickstand for a Harley Davidson motorcycle or a spindle for a trailer, and that's great. But this project is something that indirectly will benefit thousands, if not millions of people who visit the stadium over the years - including the Super Bowl in 2011," said Mario Longhi, President and CEO of Gerdau Ameristeel.

The specific type of threadbar Gerdau Ameristeel makes is unique because it does not have ribs like other rebar. The ribs are rolled onto a bar in the form of threads the entire length of the bar, and threaded couplings are used to connect the bars. After the bars have been rolled and cooled, they are stretched and stress-relieved in a heat-treat furnace to achieve high strengths.

The same type of threadbar used for the stadium has also been used in other applications, such as the monorail in Las Vegas.

"This project would not have gone off as smoothly as it did were it not for the excellent teamwork that took place between Gerdau Ameristeel and DSI," said Kerry Allen, CEO of DSI.

Construction of the stadium, slated to be finished in 2009, includes the tallest movable glass walls, largest clear-span structure and largest video board installation in the world. The rack-and-pinion drive system for the retractable roof will also be the first of its kind.

When completed in 2009, the state-of-the-art stadium will be able to accommodate up to 100,000 people. There will be more than 200 suites on five different levels, multiple restaurants and lounges, shops, an interactive Cowboy Experience and a Hall of Fame exhibit.

About Gerdau Ameristeel:

Gerdau Ameristeel is the second largest minimill steel producer in North America with annual manufacturing capacity of over 9.0 million tons of mill finished steel products. Through its vertically integrated network of 17 minimills (including one 50%-owned joint venture minimill), 17 scrap recycling facilities and 51 downstream operations (including seven joint venture fabrication facilities), Gerdau Ameristeel serves customers throughout North America. The Company's products are generally sold to steel service centers, to steel fabricators, or directly to original equipment manufacturers (or "OEMs") for use in a variety of industries, including construction, automotive, mining, cellular and electrical transmission, metal building manufacturing and equipment manufacturing. Gerdau Ameristeel's common shares are traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol GNA.TO and on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GNA. For additional financial and investor information, visit www.gerdauameristeel.com.

SOURCE  Gerdau Ameristeel Corporation
    -0-              07/31/2007
    /CONTACT: Steven Hendricks, Corporate Communications, (813) 286-8383/
    (GNA. GNA)

CO:  Gerdau Ameristeel Corporation
ST:  Ontario, Florida
IN:  MNG
SU:  PDT

    -30-

CB
-- TO374 --
2767 07/31/2007 09:00 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com