A proposed $2 billion plant near Minot would turn waste from a former Minnesota mine into an ingredient used to make steel.
The North Dakota Monitor reports North American Iron plans to ship processed ore nearly 500 miles by rail from Calumet, Minnesota. The company says the Minot plant could produce two million metric tons of pig iron each year and support 650 permanent jobs. It also claims the plant would establish the nation’s first large-scale domestic supply of merchant pig iron.
The project is not yet approved. North Dakota regulators are reviewing an air quality permit application and say the complex would be considered a major source of potential air pollution. Required public comment periods have not started. A proposed natural gas pipeline serving the plant also needs federal approval.
Construction could begin in 2027, with production starting in 2029.
You can read full reporting on the story, the first of a two part series from North Dakota Monitor reporter Payton Haug, online at NorthDakotaMonitor.com.
Comments