The ruling sets the stage for a trial on Mesabi’s claims, for which Mesabi is seeking approximately $1.9 billion in damages from Cleveland-Cliffs for impeding Mesabi from building its iron ore mine and pelletizing plant in Itasca County, Minnesota
[NASHWAUK, MN] – In a substantial victory for Mesabi Metallics Company LLC, a federal court in Delaware, after years of court proceedings and considering volumes of evidence, confirmed there is sufficient evidence that Cleveland-Cliffs caused Mesabi antitrust injury and rejected Cliffs’ request to dismiss Mesabi’s antitrust claims on summary judgment. In the antitrust suit, Mesabi alleges that Cliffs unlawfully impeded Mesabi from building its iron ore mine and pelletizing plant in Minnesota.
In a separate motion for summary judgment filed by Mesabi, the court ruled in Mesabi’s favor, finding that Cliffs is a monopolist.
Mesabi’s claims for damages against Cliffs will now proceed to trial.
The court further rejected Cliffs’ request to exclude Mesabi’s experts’ opinions, which calculated the damages caused to Mesabi by Cliffs’ anti-competitive conduct at about $1.9 billion. The final damages amount will be determined by jury after trial, an amount that would be trebled automatically under federal antitrust law.
In its opinion today, the court ruled that “there is sufficient evidence that permits a reasonable juror to conclude that Cliffs’ conduct was anticompetitive. Acquiring key mining property and entering into a long-term exclusive supply agreement with one of the largest customers in the region, coupled with pressuring critical contractors working on Mesabi’s project to terminate their relationships with Mesabi, could substantially foreclose Mesabi from the market and exclude competition.”
The court continued, “Viewing all of Cliffs’ conduct collectively, Mesabi has pointed to sufficient evidence to permit a reasonable jury to conclude that Cliffs’ conduct was a material cause of Mesabi’s inability to enter the market and thus that Mesabi has suffered antitrust injury” and that “a reasonable juror could conclude that Cliffs’…actual intent was to harm Mesabi’s ability to compete.”
Mesabi Metallics President & CEO Joe Broking commented, “We at Mesabi Metallics, as do all Minnesotans, firmly believe in a fair, transparent and competitive market. We will bring Mesabi online to benefit the Iron Range communities by creating hundreds of multigenerational, family-sustaining green jobs.”
Broking added, “Mesabi is pleased that the court’s ruling supports our position that Cliffs impeded our ability to complete the project. Mesabi hopes the decision, coupled with Essar’s and Mesabi’s continued investment in the project, helps address the past disappointment caused to our partners and stakeholders by the previous delays to the project.”
Mesabi Metallics is constructing an iron ore mine and 7 million ton per year pelletization project located on over 16,000 acres of land in Nashwauk, Minnesota. The company controls 1.3 billion tons of iron ore resources. The pelletizing facility is being constructed and is on track to commence operations in the first quarter of 2026. Mesabi Metallics has already invested more than $1.7 billion in this project and is further investing about $650 million to complete the project. The total investment of $2.4 billion will be one of the largest private investments ever made in Minnesota.
Mesabi Metallics is part of Essar Group, an industry leader with $9.5 billion assets, about $15 billion revenues and 7,000 employees with operations in the US, UK, India and several other countries in the sectors of Energy, Metals & Mining; Infrastructure; Technology and Services with a significant focus on green investments across all its sectors.
#
Contact:
Emmalynn Bauer
Manager, Corporate Communications
Emmalynn.Bauer@mesabimetallics.com
218-812-8619
User