The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1939-08-31
Ranges Lose Prestige
as Iron Ore Producers

This is a fallacy, because costs, trans
portation and taxes have increased so
greatly that for some mines all of the
profit is wiped out. In the pre-war
period, 1906-1914, the metallic con-
tent of Minnesota ores shipped was
approximately 4796 of the total tonnage
of steel produced in the United States
A steady annual decline in Minnesota s
position in the steel picture has taken
place until today she is having diff
Guilty in maintaining a 1870 position,
and during the depression dropped as
low as 26.796 The vulnerapility of
these immense, high grade deposits
thus becomes apparent. These fields,
accustomed to supplying nearly 500
iof the raw material for the production
of steel in the United States, must now
be content with the bare one-third or
even less Minnesota has lost, and is
still losing, much of her prestige in
the steel world; other minerals and
materials, as well as iron ores from
other fields, are making their influence
felt. Competition is destroying the
market, and hence the value, of these
ores.
''The most serious competitor of Min
nesota iron ore has been scrap iron and
scrap steel. From the standpoint of
conservation of natural resources, the
use of these materials is of a great
economic benefit to the United States
1JnyyQNyQr. tho loeb IF ly,,0r
ledge, and the lack of sound under
standing of the extent to which this
scrap affects the potential values of
Minnesota ores in general, and there
fore detrimental to the best interests
of the iron mining communities, and to
the State itself.
Scrap consumption during the five
year period 1906-191O was 81 million
tons. Comparing this with the two
boom periods previously mentioned, we
find an average of 1873 million tons of
scrap consumed in the 1918 period, an
increase of more than 1897, and an
average of 1916 million tons consumed
during the 1927 period, an increase of
nearly 1910 over the 1903 period.
During the last five year period, we
find scrap consumption averaging 2O8
million tons, which is still an increase
Of approximately 1860 over the 1908
period. In these same periods the
metallic content of Minnesota ore ship
ments increased 55.4%o, 51.096 and lost
TO respectively"
Mr.. Sundness pointed out that there
has been steady and rapid increase
in the percentage of scrap in the
finished product until today more than
500 of our steel comes from reworked
old metal. To-day" he said, approx
mately $50 of the finished steel comes
from the open hearth process, which
process is able to consume large per-
centages of scrap and may even be
run on 1000 scrap. 1t is this basic
change in the metalurgy of steel that
accounts for the reduction in iron ore
consumption and its replacement by
scrap.
Prominent men in the scrap in
dustry predict that steel will some day
be an ever revolving commodity, and
then we will never have to think about
iron ore reserves again. This prophecy
may or may not come to pass, but the
fact remains that in the last 80 years
the use of scrap has increased from an
average of 81 million tons to 20.8 mil
lion tons per year. Since one ton of
scrap is equivalent to two tons of ore,
this increase of II million tons dis
places "a million tons of iron ore, and
If Minnesota contributes 500 of the
total supply of ore used in the United
States, this means a curtailment of
her production to the extent of 20 mil
lion tons annually, or enough to estab-
lish substantial prosperity on her iron
ranges again.
1.-The price of iron ore, which is of
course governed by the total of all of
the costs such as taxes, royalty, produc-
ton and marketing, holds the solution
to the problem. If the price of iron
ore is increased SOC per ton, it re-