US-based Mesabi Metallics Company LLC (Mesabi Metallics), a part of the Indian Essar Group company, has announced the successful completion of the first production blast at its new iron ore mine in Nashwauk, Minnesota, a step described as an on schedule move toward first pellet production later in the third quarter of 2026.
The July 10 blast used a 66-hole pattern and fractured approximately 211,000 tons of ore in a single shot. It opened the first ramp into the bottom of the pit, clearing the way for 400-ton haul trucks to begin moving ore. Mesabi Metallics said weekly blasting is expected to continue as the mine advances toward full-scale production.
The project is positioned to become the first new iron ore mine and pellet plant built in Minnesota in 50 years, representing an investment of approximately $2.5 billion and creating 350 permanent jobs. The operation is expected to be one of the only significant domestic producers of merchant direct-reduction grade (DR-grade) iron ore pellets in North America, with a mine life of 23 years. According to figures disclosed by royalty holder The Metals Royalty Company Inc. (TMCR), the project targets throughput of 7.28 million mt per year, with a near term pathway toward 8.5 million mt per year.
The blast follows Mesabi Metallics' July 4 launch of the "Patriot Pellet," the brand for what the company calls the highest quality DR-grade iron ore pellet produced entirely on Minnesota's Iron Range. The company frames the project as part of a broader strategy to re-shore critical steel supply chains, reducing US reliance on foreign sourced DR-grade ore used to supply the country's steel, shipbuilding, and defense industrial base.
"This first blast is the moment this project stops being about preparation and starts being about production. The ore we blasted today will be processed into some of the highest quality DR-grade pellets in the world," said Shane Holman, general manager-mine at Mesabi Metallics.
Joe Broking, chief executive officer of Mesabi Metallics, said “Every ton of ore that comes out of this mine represents American jobs, American investment, and American capability being put back to work…We are committed to investing in the Iron Range to keep powering America's steel, America's shipyards, and America's defense industrial base."