President Trump is pinning part of his economic pitch on a massive new steel project in Iowa. Flanked by executives from Mesabi Metallics at the White House on Monday, he touted the company's plan for a $15 billion steel complex in eastern Iowa that the White House says could bring more than 1,700 jobs and start producing steel around 2030, the Wall Street Journal reports. The mill, to be fed by iron ore shipped down the Mississippi River from Mesabi's new Minnesota mine, would rank among the nation's largest, with initial output of 7.5 million tons a year and room to grow to 10 million. Mesabi Metallics is a Minnesota-based company owned by India's Essar Group conglomerate, the AP reports.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, who joined Trump for the Oval Office announcement, said the plans would change the "economic trajectory" of one of the state's "most depressed regions," reports the Des Moines Register. The move comes as Trump's steep tariffs have given the US some of the world's highest steel prices. Industry groups urged Trump to keep the tariffs in place in a letter Friday, saying they have already spurred over $40 billion in domestic investment. "Weakening the tariffs now would put that progress at risk," they wrote. "Tariffs have proven to be sound, effective trade policy."
Asked whether the deal would depend on state tax credits, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the deal was "done," the Register reports. "That's why we're all together with the president," he said. "The president doesn't bring people together unless it's a done deal." CNBC notes, however, that Trump has announced previous projects that didn't live up to expectations. A $10 billion Foxconn investment in Wisconsin that Trump announced in 2017, predicting "magnificent decades ahead," was later reduced to a $672 million investment.
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