Gary Mayor Eddie Melton said he was pleased to learn of a meeting between President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
United Steelworkers International President David McCall said the union’s concerns on a deal between Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel are unchanged.
Trump announced Friday that Nippon Steel was dropping its $14.1 billion acquisition of the American steel company and would instead be making an “investment, rather than a purchase,” according to the Associated Press. Trump will “mediate and arbitrate” as the companies negotiate the investment, he said.
The president also mistakenly referred to Nippon Steel as “Nissan.”
It was unclear what the details of Nippon’s investment would be and when it would be official, according to the Associated Press.
Trump met with U.S. Steel Chief Executive David Burritt at the White House on Thursday, Reuters reported.
Trump had vowed during his campaign that he would block the acquisition. Both former President Joe Biden and former President Kamala Harris said they opposed the purchase.
Melton supported U.S. Steel’s potential acquisition since last August, when it was announced that Nippon Steel would invest $300 million into the Gary Works facility. A company executive later said that Nippon would invest $1 billion into Gary Works.
In a statement Friday, Melton thanked U.S. Sen. Todd Young, R-Indiana, for advocating for Gary and communicating with Trump about the deal.
“I’m optimistic that with fresh leadership from the Trump Administration there is potential for an excellent deal that benefits American steel making communities like Gary for years to come,” Melton’s statement said.
McCall was less optimistic about a deal between the two companies in a Friday statement. He and other USW leadership have been critical of Nippon, particularly for concerns of the Japanese company’s desire to follow U.S. Steel’s business model and lack of investment in union facilities.
“Nippon has proven itself to be a serial trade cheater with a history of dumping its products into our markets,” McCall’s statement said. “While we await the details of the proposed investment, we encourage President Trump to continue safeguarding the long-term future of the domestic steel industry by instead seeking American alternatives.”
Despite what happens with the investment, McCall said the USW will continue to protect the best interests of its communities.
Before he left office last month, Biden blocked Nippon’s $14.9 billion purchase of U.S. Steel, citing national security concerns.
Three days after, U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel filed multiple lawsuits. The first — in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit — alleged the blocking violated due process and statutory procedural requirements and unlawful evidence, and asked the court to set aside the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ review process and Biden’s blocking order.
The second was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania against Cleveland-Cliffs, its CEO Lourenco Goncalves and McCall for “illegal and coordinated actions” to prevent the deal. The steel companies allege McCall and the union violated federal anti-trust laws and Pennsylvania state tort laws for interference with contract.
The USW filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit this week, saying it’s against First Amendment rights. The lawsuit will be heard by the court on March 12.
“It is both our right and our responsibility to speak out against the kinds of mergers that U.S. Steel and Nippon were proposing — a sale that would have hurt both our members and our national security,” President David McCall said in a Wednesday news release. “This includes lobbying our elected officials at all levels of government and is a fundamental protection for all Americans.”
Melton has been critical of McCall and USW leadership’s position on the acquisition. He’s said the purchase would’ve been best for Gary families.
U.S. Steel employs about 4,500 employees at Gary Works and its Midwest Plant in Portage.
Last August, Nippon Steel announced it would put about $300 million toward the facility, updating the blast furnace and extending its life by up to 20 years. Northwest Indiana environmental activists have called blast furnaces outdated and said they would prefer a direct reduction furnace because it is more environmentally and economically friendly.
