A Snapshot of Iron Range Economics

Bob Tammen is a retired electrician who worked for many years in Minnesota's mining industry. When we first talked with him in 2013, Bob expressed many concerns about the economy created around the local mining operations. Bob cited some alarming statistics on poverty and household incomes in mining communities. We took a look at contemporary numbers for these same stats to examine the region's economic progress. The tables below summarizes those numbers.

Income & Poverty Rates on the MN Iron Range | 2022

Iron Ore Produced in MN | 2022

While the region's mining operations generated revenues of more than $3.5 billion, the poverty rates of all, but one of mining's host communities are well above the state average. In 2022, in Virginia, Minnesota the rate of children living in poverty was 31%. Virginia is home to the Minorca Mine, owned by Cleveland-Cliffs. That same year, Lourenco Goncalves, Cleveland-Cliffs' CEO, made $18.5 million. In 2023, Mr. Goncalves received a raise, increasing his compensation to $26 million. (Mining Tax, U.S. Census, Paywatch)