Trump announces $15b steel mill investment in Iowa, credits tariffs

President Donald Trump on Monday (local time) announced a $15 billion investment plan to build a large steel mill in Iowa.

Speaking at the White House, Trump said he was "very pleased" to announce that Mesabi Metallics would build "the largest steel mill in the history of the United States in the great state of Iowa."

He said the steel would be "mined, smelted and made right here in America," adding that once completed, the mill would use iron ore mined in Minnesota to produce 10 million metric tons of steel annually. Trump also said he had imposed "a powerful 50% tariff on all foreign steel" immediately after taking office and that the country's steel industry was "coming back to life." "Because they don't want to pay the tariff, everybody is building their factory here," he said.

Trump went on to say that his tariff policy was generating hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue, and repeated his promise to pay what he has called a "Trump dividend" — a $5,000 payment to every adult — if Republicans win control of both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections.

Mesabi Metallics is a Minnesota-based iron ore mining and processing company affiliated with India's Essar Group. The company recently opened an iron ore mine in Minnesota.

Mesabi Metallics plans to use ore from that mine to produce steel in Iowa. The first phase would yield 7.5 million metric tons annually, with production capacity eventually expanding to 10 million metric tons per year.

A White House official told Reuters that the first phase alone is expected to create 5,000 to 6,000 jobs — roughly 350 from the Minnesota mine and at least 1,750 full-time positions from the Iowa mill.

With the November midterm elections approaching and voter frustration mounting over rising prices, Trump has focused on promoting his economic record, and Monday's announcement fits squarely into that effort.

Trump has repeatedly argued that his high tariffs are bringing manufacturing investment and jobs back to the United States. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said at the announcement event that "this is what Section 232 tariffs, steel tariffs, actually look like working," adding that without those tariffs, "this mine would not have been built, this steel mill would not have been built."

Iowa is a Republican stronghold where Trump won by a wide margin in the 2024 presidential election, but this year's midterms are expected to bring competitive races for one Senate seat and three House districts currently held by Republicans.