DNR says lender not credible for proposed iron ore mine in northeast Minnesota inforum.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from inforum.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A clash of American steel titans could now define the next generation of mining on Minnesotaâs Iron Range, as U.S. Steel emerged Thursday with interest in the Nashwauk mineral leases long pursued by industry rival Cleveland-Cliffs.
Their interest comes a week after state officials said they initiated a lease termination process with Mesabi Metallics, the Essar Global-controlled company that has failed to develop the Nashwauk site since 2008, fueling speculation that Cliffs was next in line to gain control of the stateâs minerals.
U.S. Steelâs seemingly sudden interest could complicate matters for the state Department of Natural Resources and Executive Council as they weigh the future of the embattled project. Cliffs has been an outspoken suitor of the state leases for several years, while U.S. Steel had not publicly acknowledged interest in the property in recent years.
Steel and iron ore producer Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc., is ready to take the keys to the long-languishing mammoth iron ore project near Nashwauk.
Several Iron Range legislators would like nothing better than to see the company in the driver s seat.
âThey ve been saying for quite some time now that if they get the leases and get control of the property, they would do a project there,â Sen. David Tomassoni of Chisholm said. âI think what they re saying is real.â
Hours after the state of Minnesota announced action to begin terminating state mineral leases awarded to Mesabi Metallics at the site, Cleveland-Cliffs President and Chief Executive Officer Lourenco Goncalves responded to the state s action.
Mesabi Metallics, the company in control of the embattled Nashwauk mining project, has just hours remaining to submit financial and offtake agreements to Minnesota regulators before the stateâs Executive Council is set to decide their fate next month.
The deadline is part of an amended lease agreement approved by the stateâs top elected officials â including the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state and auditor â in a controversial extension of terms last December.
If Mesabi Metallics makes its Saturday deadline in earnest, the Executive Council can approve their financial and offtake partners allowing the company to move forward. On the other hand, they could deem the submissions insufficient and opt to pull leases on state owned minerals, effectively dealing the final blow to the current iteration of the project.
So it s only fitting that Iron Range steelworkers have come to his aid.
Pfeiffer, eight, of Bovey, has undergone five rounds of chemotherapy, two surgeries, two stem cell transplants, 10 rounds of radiation, and six rounds of immunotherapy.
âWe could not ask for a tougher kid,â Easton s mother, Samantha Pfeiffer, a registered nurse at Grand Itasca Clinic & Hospital in Grand Rapids said. âBut when he s home, he s like a normal Easton. He s energetic, outgoing and likes to be outside riding his bike, fishing and camping.â
Easton s father Derek is a production truck driver at Hibbing Taconite Co.
Each day last week, United Steelworkers Local 2705 volunteers took donations at a Hibbing Taconite Co. gate to benefit Easton and his family.