Lee County Steel collects business information about the planned Mesabi Metallics steel project in southeast Iowa for local contractors, suppliers, and job seekers: bid notices, job postings, supplier requirements, and public meetings.
Independent. Not affiliated with Mesabi Metallics, any union, campaign, or government agency.
What this site is not
This is not a news outlet. For reporting on the project, read local news. Relevant articles are linked below with the outlet's name.
How information is sourced
- Every factual statement links to its source.
- Company releases, state agencies, and county government are preferred over news coverage. When a statement comes only from news coverage, the site says so.
- Anything reported but not confirmed by a company, state, or county source is listed as an open question below.
- Job and bid postings are linked, not copied.
- This site does not collect or publish personal information about individuals.
Open questions
Reported, but not confirmed by a company, state, or county source as of Sept. 29, 2026:
- County: Lee County is named in news coverage, but not in any company, state, or county document reviewed as of Sept. 29. Reported by: Iowa Public Radio Reported by: CBS2 Iowa
- Site: No town, parcel, or acreage has been disclosed. The Lee County Economic Development Group was quoted as not sharing location details. Reported by: Tri States Public Radio
- Timeline: News coverage reports operations are expected in 2030. The company release gives no date. Reported by: ENR
- Financing: Coverage reports federal Export-Import Bank financing for the company's Minnesota mine. Whether any federal financing covers the Iowa plant is not confirmed. Reported by: KAXE
- Construction team: News coverage reports that officials have not identified a construction team. Reported by: ENR
Local news coverage
- Tri States Public Radio: $15 billion steel project would bring opportunity — and questions — to Lee County
- Pen City Current: Governor calls for special session on steel plant incentives
- Iowa Capital Dispatch: Iowa lawmakers to convene Friday for special session on tax incentives for steel mill
- Iowa Public Radio: Trump announces $15B steel plant coming to eastern Iowa
Corrections
Send corrections to leecountysteel@leecountysteel.com. Please include a link to the source.