WASHINGTON (Diya TV) — President Donald Trump announced plans Monday for a $15 billion steel plant in Iowa backed by India’s Essar Group. The proposed plant is part of an $18 billion investment that also includes about $3 billion for a Minnesota iron ore mine and pellet facility. The Minnesota spending is already underway.
Essar-backed Mesabi Metallics plans to ship iron ore from its mine in Nashwauk, Minnesota, to the Iowa complex, where it would make steel using electric arc furnaces. The company says the first phase would produce 7.5 million tons of steel a year, with capacity eventually reaching about 10 million tons. It expects production to begin in 2030.
Mesabi estimates the Iowa project would support more than 6,000 construction jobs and employ at least 1,750 people once operational. The company has not announced a precise Iowa site. Trump called the planned facility the largest steel plant in U.S. history; the White House described it as one of the largest. Its proposed capacity remains subject to construction and expansion.
Mesabi says its Minnesota operation is the first new U.S. iron ore mine in 50 years. The company plans to turn the ore into pellets for steelmaking before sending them to Iowa. At the proposed mill, it would combine iron made from those pellets with scrap steel.
Trump presented the announcement as evidence that tariffs encourage companies to manufacture in the United States. His administration increased tariffs on most imported steel to 50%. Essar and the White House have not established how much of the Iowa investment resulted from those tariffs.
The announcement links an operating mine project to a steel plant that Mesabi still plans to build.
