April 2, 2001 - A new report says it's feasible to build an enhanced iron pellet operation in Northeastern Minnesota - but that LTV Steel's shuttered Hoyt Lakes taconite plant may not be the best place to do it. A consultant for a state development agency has formed a new company to produce iron pellets at an existing taconite plant in Silver Bay -- a project he says would eventually provide one hundred jobs. But the future of the LTV mining plant remains in doubt. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Kelleher, reports: {A new study says, yes, it's possible to produce high iron-content pellets in the closed LTV Steel taconite plant in Hoyt Lakes, but, no, it's not likely to happen any time soon. Instead, a steel industry consultant expects to produce Minnesota's first enhanced iron pellets in Northshore Mining company's taconite plant in Silver Bay.
March 26, 2001 - MPR’s Bob Kelleher reports on the effects low water levels in Lake Superior are having on shipping. Great Lakes freighters will be loading lighter than ever to stay above the bottoms of harbors and rivers between the lakes.
March 13, 2001 - Minnesota's boom and bust taconite industry enjoyed a long healthy period in the 1990's. But by 1998, steel makers began to feel the full of effects of open trade on the global market. The struggle ended for Minnesota's second largest taconite producer in January, when LTV Steel Corporation closed it's Hoyt Lakes mine and taconite pellet plant. Now, as Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Kelleher reports, other producers are fighting to stay open.
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December 29, 2000 - Governors of the eight Great Lakes States have floated a series of proposals intended to keep Great Lakes water in the five Great Lakes. The plan by the Council of Great Lakes Governors would make it a lot harder to sell water to anyone outside the region. But first, they've got to convince two Canadian provincial governments and a handful of environmental groups the proposals are tough enough. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Kelleher reports: {Great Lakes residents were alarmed two years ago when a private company announced plans to sell ship loads of Lake Superior water to Asia. Few would have missed the water. But it could have established a precedent ... and some predicted future deals might involve much more than a few ship loads at a time.
December 15, 2000 - UNemployment remains low across Minnesota, despite a slowing economy. In Northeast Minnesota's Arrowhead, the jobless rate hovers around 3-percent; but new data shows that many of those with jobs are either working below their abilities, or making less money than they could elsewhere. Economic development officials hope to convince new employers the region's under-employment represents a hidden work force that's ready to be tapped. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Kelleher reports.
December 7, 2000 - Minnesota's Iron Range is bracing for an economic down turn when LTV Steel closes it's Hoyt Lake taconite mine in February. The company announced yesterday the plant is shutting down several months sooner than earlier announced, putting more than a thousand people out of work. Economists say the closing may strengthen Minnesota's six remaining taconite companies - but any benefits may be diminished by a softening national economy. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Kelleher reports: {The timing couldn't be worse for the workers of LTV Steel Mining, who expected another eight months on the job. Instead, the company's Iron Mine and taconite pellet production will end February 24th - with a few hundred workers staying on into the summer to ship pellet stockpiles. Laid off workers are faced with Christmas expenses and predictions of soaring winter heating bills.
November 27, 2000 -