Cleveland-Cliffs Holds Ribbon Reducing Ceremony at Direct Discount Plant in Toledo

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE: CLF) today celebrates the first six months of continued operations and production of hot briquette iron (HBI) at the company’s state-of-the-art direct reduction facility in Toledo, Ohio. Cliffs Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Lourenco Goncalves will welcome Ohio Governor Mike DeWine to an on-site ribbon cutting ceremony. The plant employs almost 160 people.

Cleveland-Cliffs will be broadcast live today, June 9th at 10:00 AM ET, the tape cut from the direct reduction facility. The live broadcast is available on the Cleveland-Cliffs YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/ClevelandCliffsInc or via a link on the home page of Cleveland-Cliffs’ website at www.clevelandcliffs.com.

Lourenco Goncalves, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Today we are celebrating a new era for the iron and steel industry in the United States. This event officially marks the culmination of our $ 1 billion investment in construction and operations the world’s largest modern and environmentally friendly direct reduction plant and the first plant of its kind built for the present and the future. ” Mr. Goncalves added, “Natural gas based iron reduction is the future of our industry. The production and use of HBI in our operations has driven a phenomenal year for us and, most importantly, has driven our program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It has also increased our profitability through improved productivity in our blast furnaces and the avoidance of premium third party scrap purchases for use in our EAFs and BOFs. “

“I am delighted to attend the celebration of the new Cleveland-Cliffs direct reduction plant in Toledo,” said Governor DeWine. “This facility is bringing new life to a site that is now using an environmentally friendly process to manufacture a much-needed product for the domestic steel industry and provide jobs and opportunities for workers in northwest Ohio,” said Governor Mike DeWine. “When Cleveland-Cliffs was looking for a home for this facility, they realized that Ohio was a great place to do business and chose Toledo because it has a dedicated workforce, excellent infrastructure and good partners to laying the foundations like JobsOhio, the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority, the Regional Growth Partnership, the City of Toledo, and others. “

The story goes on

Lourenco Goncalves, Cliffs Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, will speak with the following dignitaries at the event:

Cleveland-Cliffs has the nominal capacity to produce 1.9 million tons of custom, high quality HBI per year using natural gas based iron reduction. HBI can be used in blast furnaces to improve productivity and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by lowering the amount of coke needed to make steel. HBI can also be used in EAFs and BOFs to replace foreign pig iron and primary scrap, lowering costs and reducing the higher greenhouse gas emissions associated with pig iron production and transportation.

About Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.

Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest flat steel producer in North America. Founded in 1847 as a mine operator, Cliffs is also the largest manufacturer of iron ore pellets in North America. The company is vertically integrated from extracted raw materials and directly reduced iron to primary steel production and downstream processing, stamping, tools and pipes. The company serves a large number of markets due to its extensive range of flat steel products and is the largest steel supplier to the automotive industry in North America. Cleveland-Cliffs is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, and employs approximately 25,000 people in its mining, steel, and downstream manufacturing operations in the United States and Canada. For more information, visit www.clevelandcliffs.com.

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