By William Beacom
Marquette, MI – Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is moving forward with plans to acquire partners' interest in Wabush Mines. By exercising their Right of First Refusal, Cliff's will acquire U.S. Steel Canada's 44.6% interest stake and ArcelorMittal Dofasco's 28.6% interest stake in the Wabush Mines joint venture. Cliff's will increase its ownership stake to 100%. With Wabush Mines, production capacity will increase by approximately 4 million tons. Cliffs has been the managing partner of the mines giving Cliffs a familiarity with the opportunities and challenges faced by Wabush. The transaction is expected to be finalized before 2010.