U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with members of the media on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One on Saturday, September 26, 2026 in Washington, DC, USA.
Samuel Corum | Bloomberg | Getty Images
President Donald Trump is expected to announce on Monday the steel company’s plan to invest about $15 billion to build the plant, which will be the largest of its kind in U.S. history, a White House official confirmed to CNBC.
The Oval Office announcement with Mesabi Metallics, scheduled for 2 p.m. ET, comes weeks before the November midterm elections, which are set to be shaped by Americans’ increasingly negative views of President Trump’s handling of the economy.
The steel plant will be built in Iowa and is targeted to begin production in 2030, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a White House event.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the planned announcement early Monday morning.
Mesabi Metallics, based in Nashwauk, Minn., told CNBC that the project will provide “100% American-made steel that is mined, melted and injected in Minnesota and Iowa.”
The company confirmed that its chairman, Lewanto Ruia, will speak alongside President Trump at a White House event.
The steel mill, which will use iron ore from the Mesabi Mine in Minnesota’s Iron Range, is a $2.5 billion project that has just begun production after nearly 20 years of development. The project was plagued by controversy and setbacks, including Essar Steel Minnesota filing for bankruptcy in 2016. Mesavi is part of the Indian conglomerate Essar Group.
The first phase of the Iowa steel mill is estimated to produce about 7.5 million tons annually and support up to 6,000 construction jobs, according to the White House. It is expected to eventually increase to 10 million tons per year and support at least 1,750 permanent jobs, officials told CNBC. The Minnesota mining project reportedly created 200 full-time jobs out of an expected total of 350, according to Minnesota Public Radio.
In addition to Ruia, Trump will be joined in the Oval Office by Mesabi Metallics CEO Joe Broking, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Export-Import Bank President John Jovanovich, the person said. Other attendees include Jarrod Agen, executive director of the White House National Energy Governance Council, and David Copley, senior director for global supply chains at the National Security Council.
President Trump imposed 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports near the start of his second term, then doubled them to 50%. The president, who strongly dislikes trade deficits and has criticized free trade agreements, has imposed a variety of heavy import tariffs in an effort to revitalize domestic manufacturing.
Critics argue that the tariffs have played a major role in increasing U.S. steel prices, which have recently reached multi-year highs.
But a number of steel industry groups sent a letter to President Trump on Friday acknowledging that steel tariffs have boosted $47 billion in “announced and ongoing investments.” They urged not to lower tariffs, saying doing so would “jeopardize that progress.”
“President Trump is delivering on his promise to rebuild American industry, revive manufacturing and create new jobs,” White House Press Secretary Taylor Rogers told CNBC in a statement.
“Today’s announcement underscores the President’s historic commitment to revitalizing the U.S. steel industry by supporting local communities, strengthening supply chains, and national security,” Rogers said. “After decades of decline, this president is restoring America’s industrial competitiveness and securing trillions of dollars in new investment.”
