Mining Features

5,284 jobs supported or sustained by economic activity

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U.S. Steel in Minnesota: $1.8 billion in economic impact

MOUNTAIN IRON – United States Steel Corporation’s (“U.S. Steel”) Minnesota Ore Operations in the Mesabi Iron Range of northern Minnesota contributed $1.8 billion to the local and state economy in Fiscal Year 2022 (FY22), according to an economic impact report released in December. The report further concludes that U.S. Steel’s economic activity supported or sustained 5,284 jobs. Facilities in this […]

Cleveland-Cliffs completes successful blast furnace hydrogen injection trial at Indiana Harbor #7 blast furnace

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Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. announced January 26, that it has successfully completed a hydrogen (H2) injection trial at its Indiana Harbor #7 blast furnace, the largest blast furnace in North America. This represents the second Cleveland-Cliffs blast furnace to utilize hydrogen as a reductant and fuel source, following the successful trial at Middletown Works in May of 2023. Indiana Harbor #7 is […]

Drilling for helium in the woods of Lake County

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A precious element that’s new to Minnesota mining


If all goes as Thomas Abraham-James hopes, northern Minnesota may one day produce a supply of a critical element that is needed world-wide. It’s not the palladium, platinum, copper, or other precious metals that mining companies are trying to extract. This product is lighter than air, colorless, odorless, tasteless, but still necessary for a wide range of high-end scientific applications. […]

Geologic mapping below the surface

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Critical mineral resource potential data being mapped


“Minnesota is an important target for more information because of our spectacular geology and the combined geologic knowledge of the NRRI, the DNR, and the Minnesota Geological Survey.” –George Hudak Getting an MRI—Magnetic Resonance Imaging—at a hospital allows doctors to get a detailed, 3D image of a person’s body to diagnose diseases deep within. The U.S. Geological Survey is doing […]

The Vermilion Range: first to open, first to cease mining

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The Vermilion Range, with its distinctively hard and high-grade iron ore deposits, looms large in the history of the mining industry in Minnesota. It was the first range to open in 1884 and also the first to cease commercial mining operations in 1967 due to changes in the steel-making process and the rise of cheaper-to-produce taconite in the nearby Mesabi […]

1990 – 1998 with the IRRRB:

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A time of recovery and development on the Iron Range

Editor’s Note: The following is an excerpt from Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board Celebrating 75 Years on the Iron Range by Bill Beck. Beck was commissioned by the IRRRB to write a book on the history of the agency in honor of its 75th anniversary. This chapter on the economic recovery period of 1990–1998 is being reprinted with permission […]

Meet the NRRI Coleraine researcher, Sunil Tripathy

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When Sunil Tripathy was ready to take his career in India’s steel industry to a new level, NRRI and Minnesota rose to the top of his list. “Its emphasis on the balance between academic and applied research—and the concept of mine-to-metal as well as laboratory-to-pilot-scale—stood out as a key attraction,” said Tripathy. “And I enjoy the customer interactions at the […]

Natural Connections—

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The very lengthy beginnings of banded iron formation


The old road angled steeply up the hillside. Thick drifts of autumn leaves concealed loose rocks and little ravines. Saplings and brush crowded in from the sides, threatening to scratch cheeks already rosy from the cold. After several minutes of tough hiking, the road leveled out, and big concrete structures loomed among the trees. From 1922 to 1924, the Pioneer […]

“That’ll leave a mark”

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The Sudbury Impact and Minnesota’s geologic past


Approximately 1.8 billion years ago, the Earth would be forever changed when it was suddenly struck by a meteor. No, this was not the impact that killed the dinosaurs. That would not occur for another 1.7 billion years. This particular geologic event has since been called the Sudbury Impact. And while this meteor hit in present day Greater Sudbury, Ontario, […]

Iron and steel industries are all in for “decarbonization”

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Minnesota has an abundance of iron ore mineral resources. The Mesabi Iron Range produces some 40 million tons of taconite pellets annually, providing 75 – 85 percent of the U.S. domestic iron for steel production. Fossil coal and natural gas provide the energy and the carbon essential for iron and steelmaking. Minnesota’s iron industry has made significant strides to reduce […]


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