Cliffs expediting Australia exit to focus on US business

摘要

Cleveland-Cliffs has accelerated the time frame for the closure of mining operations in Australia and is on pace to cease operations in the country this year as the miner maintains its focus on its expanding US operations. Cliffs, a long-time pellet provider for US blast furnaces, is progressing on two major initiatives to supply US electric-arc furnaces. In 2018 the company plans to spend $250 million toward its HBI project in Toledo, Ohio that was fully funded as of December 2017. It will also spend approximately $50 million toward further upgrades at its Northshore mine to produce up to 3.5 million lt/year of low-silica DR-grade pellets that will feed the Toledo HBI facility.