• Analysis
Iowa steel mill promised in Wever region, but a month on there is no sign of construction
In late September, Donald Trump announced that Mesabi Metallics would invest $15bn to build the largest steel mill in the United States in Iowa. A month later, days before the midterm elections, the town of Wever, population 142, has seen no construction begin.
What was promised
The announcement came in late September, when Trump said in the Oval Office that Mesabi Metallics, a Minnesota-based firm that is part of the Indian conglomerate Essar Group, would invest $15bn to make Iowa the site of the largest steel mill in the country. The White House projected the iowa steel mill would create 6,000 construction jobs and 1,750 permanent positions, and generate $95bn in economic activity.
- •6,000 jobs during construction, according to the White House
- •1,750 permanent jobs once the mill is complete
- •$95bn in projected economic activity
- •$1.4bn in tax breaks quickly approved by Iowa's Republican-controlled legislature
Mesabi spokesperson Charles Sutton said the firm is on track to produce steel by 2030 from a site in "eastern Iowa", with the location to be announced soon.
Election timing
Trump made the plan public just over a month before Tuesday's midterm elections, in which Iowa could play a major role in determining whether Democrats regain control of Congress amid Trump's low approval ratings. Wever itself lies in the congressional district viewed as the most competitive in the state. The district's Republican representative, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, was elected to a third term in 2024 by less than 800 votes and is a top target of Democrats this year.
The timing has drawn scrutiny partly because of a similar episode days later: Trump said South Korea would invest $54bn in a long-discussed Alaska natural gas pipeline, but officials in Seoul said they had agreed to no such deal.
What residents and officials say
In Wever, residents are cautious. Missy Pollpeter, 52, said the project's potential comes down to one thing: more jobs. Her husband, Mike Pollpeter, 60, qualified that with "If they bring it here". Bartender Jeff Thompson, serving drinks, recalled Foxconn, the electronics firm Trump said would build a massive Wisconsin factory during his first term, which flopped.
Mike Strom, who owns both the bar and the restaurant in Wever, searched public records and found no land sales, not even confidential ones that could signal deals being done, and floodplain residents reported no one asking about their land.
"I'm a huge proponent of, I'll believe it when I see it," Strom said. "Because you hear a lot of things."
Elected officials remain upbeat. Miller-Meeks, who represents south-eastern Iowa, said the project is for sure happening, and that details are under negotiation between the county and Mesabi: "It will be on the outcome of those negotiations, but it will be coming to south-east Iowa," she said.
State legislator Blaine Watkins said the mill would "completely change" Lee county, where Trump won almost two-thirds of the vote in 2024. Watkins said talks had been going on for seven or eight months and he had a hard time believing they would not come to fruition.
- •Watkins: "unless someone says we're not going to do it, they're doing it, and we're negotiating like they're going to do it"
Sutton, the Mesabi spokesperson, said: "The project is in active development with strong momentum". He added: "We anticipate being able to make several announcements in the coming weeks in line with the project schedule".
A region waiting for jobs
The stakes are concrete for the region. Burlington, long known as the "Backhoe Capital of the World", saw the multinational firm CNH close the plant that made its excavators earlier this year, putting about 200 people out of work. Burlington mayor Jon Billups welcomed the idea of a steel mill within commuting distance: "What happens that's good for the region is good for Burlington, and what happens in Burlington is normally good for the region," he said.
Democrats and labor voices say they want the mill built while questioning the deal. Democratic state representative and US Senate candidate Josh Turek voted for the tax breaks and said he hopes the facility gets built: "We need the jobs and we need American manufacturing to return here, and return here to Iowa". Rob Sand, the Democratic nominee for governor, said a good deal that gets the steel plant done would be a priority, but that he will not give away the farm.
Chris Tucker, international representative for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which endorsed both Turek and Sand, said: "I want it to be real, right? I think it'd be great for the area. I think it's great for the workers, but I'm skeptical".
Ryan Drew, president of the Des Moines-Henry County Labor Alliance, was wary of Trump announcing the news in the Oval Office alongside Miller-Meeks and Ashley Hinson, the congresswoman facing Turek in the Senate race. "It's just kind of the way it was unveiled in there that it kind of makes you wonder if it's legitimate or not," Drew said.
For now, Mesabi maintains the schedule holds: Sutton says the firm is on track to produce steel by 2030 from a site in eastern Iowa, with the location to be announced soon.
