On Friday, Russian-based steel company Severstal received news that its US subsidiary, Severstal North America, was no longer receiving a $730 million dollar loan from the US Department of Energy (DOE) for its steel plant in Dearborn, Michigan. The loan was initially awarded during the summer of 2011 under the US DOE's Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing program.
The US DOE did not give a reason as to why the DOE rescinded the loan. Speculation about the amount of risk involved in the project has been offered as a reason, but there has been no official word.
As SteelOrbis previously reported, in November the loan drew criticism from two Republican senators--Dan Coats and Pat Toomey--who sent letters to the US DOE asking details regarding the decision making process that resulted in the US DOE approving the loan.