What we learned about Cleveland-Cliffs’ $1 billion Middletown Works overhaul

MetroThe sign outside Cleveland-Cliffs steel plant in Middletown, Ohio. JD Vance's grandfather moved to Middletown to work at the plant when it was owned by Armco.Sabrina Eaton, cleveland.com/The Plain DealerBy Michael Johnson, cleveland.comcleveland.com Express DeskCLEVELAND, Ohio — Cleveland-Cliffs’ revised Middletown Works project keeps the plant’s coal-based blast furnace in service while cutting the company’s planned investment to $500 million, with another $500 million expected from the U.S. Department of Energy.The change replaces a 2024 plan to install hydrogen-ready ironmaking and electric melting furnaces. Federal negotiations are not yet final, and Cleveland-Cliffs has not released a comparable estimate of the revised project’s greenhouse-gas reductions.These are five takeaways from the original article, which examined what changed, how the money would be spent and what remains unresolved.1. The $1 billion project preserves the blast furnaceCleveland-Cliffs now plans to rebuild and upgrade Middletown Works’ existing blast furnace rather than replace it with a direct reduced iron plant and two electric melting furnaces.The revised project also includes material-handling improvements, artificial intelligence-enabled process controls and a cogeneration facility that would use blast-furnace gas to produce electricity and steam.2. Cleveland-Cliffs’ own investment is substantially smallerCleveland-Cliffs says it will invest $500 million, with DOE providing another $500 million.Under the original plan, the company projected about $1.3 billion in net capital spending over five years after federal funding and avoided spending on the existing blast furnace and coke plants.The figures aren’t directly comparable because the projects have different scopes, but the company’s announced cash commitment is now much lower.3. The federal grant still isn’t fully settledDOE selected the original Middletown project in 2024 for up to $500 million through its Industrial Demonstrations Program.Cleveland-Cliffs said Friday that it and DOE still must complete negotiations and implementation plans for the rescoped project. The company did not say what remains under negotiation or when a final agreement is expected.The revised framework has been announced, but some federal terms remain unresolved.4. The revised plan has no comparable emissions estimateDOE projected the original conversion would reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by about 1 million metric tons a year by eliminating coke from iron production.Friday’s announcement provided no comparable estimate for the revised project, which retains blast-furnace steelmaking.Cleveland-Cliffs says preserving the furnace is important for automotive-grade steel. But its 2024 annual report said the original replacement technology would not adversely affect product quality or capability.5. The project would preserve jobs, but no new permanent jobs were announcedCleveland-Cliffs says the revised investment would preserve 2,300 jobs and employ more than 1,500 workers at peak construction. It did not announce additional permanent jobs.The 2024 plan was expected to secure 2,500 jobs, add 170 permanent jobs and create 1,200 building-trades jobs at peak construction.Work is expected to begin in the coming weeks and continue for four years, with the blast-furnace rebuild scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2030. Middletown City Council voted 4-1 in July to support the related air-permit application and project.Michael Johnson brings nearly four decades of newspaper experience in reporting, editing, newsroom leadership, page design and digital publishing. He has led daily and weekly newsrooms in Pennsylvania,...