Taconot

How much taconite (an iron ore product used to make steel) is being produced on the Iron Range right now?

Catherine Conlan at MinnPost tells us: none.

The Iron Range is the largest domestic source of iron ore in the United States and we are generating zip as of today. They’re shipping some stockpiles, but that’s it. Granted, iron ore demand is a lagging indicator not a leading indicator. But I don’t think people on the Iron Range find much comfort in that fact. Let this be a reminder that we might be on the road to recovery but that the patch of highway up ahead is underwater and filled with alligators.

Alligators that like the cold and always take the last two beers at parties. I hate those alligators, don’t you?

Comments

  1. Is anything in the stockpiles even being shipped?

  2. We were, apparently, sending a lot of iron/steel to China so they could build those factories to make all that junk to send back to us and dorms for the workers. Now those places are ghost towns. I guess they don’t need our iron any more.

  3. That ain’t all bad. A buddy who runs a machining company (not local) tells me their orders picked up last month and continue the trend this month. Let’s hope that’s a sign for our economy. His business has been a pretty reliable indicator over a period of about 30 years.

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