US Steel plant resumes limited operations
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — U.S. Steel says its largest mill is on limited production, after a shortage of vital iron ore due to the ice covering Lake Superior had temporarily shut down its furnaces.
Company spokeswoman Courtney Boone said Monday that ships were able to bring ore to the sprawling Gary Works on Sunday despite lingering ice from the frigid winter. She would not specify the level of production or estimate the shutdown's cost. She said U.S Steel hopes to get more ore to the mill this week.
The mill, which feeds steel to big industries, was shut down for about a week.
A spokesman for the Great Lakes shipping industry says iron ore stockpiles are running low in many places and coal shipments in March were down 70 percent from a year ago.
