WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced a plan to build a $15 billion (about 20.4 trillion won) steel mill in Iowa.
Speaking at the White House on the 28th, Trump said he was pleased to announce that Mesabi Metallics will build the largest steel mill in U.S. history in Iowa. Mesabi Metallics is an iron ore mining and processing company headquartered in Minnesota and an affiliate of India's Essar Group. The company recently opened an iron mine in Minnesota.
"This steel will be mined, smelted and made in America," Trump said, explaining that once completed, the mill will produce 10 million tons of steel a year using iron ore mined in Minnesota. He also stressed that he imposed a 50% tariff on all foreign steel shortly after taking office and that the U.S. steel industry is now regaining its vitality, adding that everyone is building plants in the country because they do not want to pay tariffs.
A White House official told Reuters that the first phase of the project alone is expected to create 5,000 to 6,000 jobs, including about 350 positions at the Minnesota mine and at least 1,750 full-time jobs at the Iowa steel mill. The mill is expected to begin operating in 2030.
Trump has been backed into a corner ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections as voter discontent grows over issues such as surging gasoline prices. Iowa is a state he won by 13 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election, but recent polls show a tight race. Voters will decide one Senate seat and three House districts currently held by Republicans, and in the Senate race the Republican and Democratic candidates are within the margin of error. In a Marist poll released on the 22nd of this month, Democratic candidate Josh Turek led Republican Ashley Hinson by 8 percentage points, drawing 50%.
Responding to Republicans' recent weak showing, Trump called the polls "fake," saying it makes no sense that the Republican candidates cannot stand shoulder to shoulder with him when he won by an overwhelming margin.
