Officials have announced that Minnesota-based company Cleveland-Cliffs will acquire AK Steel for $1.1 billion.
“The transaction will combine Cliffs, North America’s largest producer of iron ore pellets, with AK Steel, a leading producer of innovative flat-rolled carbon, stainless and electrical steel products, to create a vertically integrated producer of value-added iron ore and steel products,” the companies said in a joint press release Tuesday. “The combined company will be ideally positioned to provide high-value iron ore and steel solutions to customers primarily across North America.”
Through the merger, AK Steel will become a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of Cliffs and will retain its branding and corporate identity.
The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2020, subject to approval by the shareholders of both companies, receipt of regulatory approvals and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.
AK Steel is a leading producer of flat-rolled carbon, stainless and electrical steel products, primarily for the automotive, infrastructure and manufacturing. Headquartered in West Chester, Ohio, the company has approximately 9,500 employees at manufacturing operations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and facilities in Western Europe.
Founded in 1847, Cleveland-Cliffs is the largest and oldest independent iron ore mining company in the United States. The company is a major supplier of iron ore pellets to the North American steel industry from its mines and pellet plants located in Michigan and Minnesota.