Tilden Mine (Cleveland-Cliffs)
Large load · 1 TILDEN MINE ROAD PO BOX 2000, Ishpeming, MI
Tilden Mine is Cleveland-Cliffs' iron ore operation on the Marquette Iron Range in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, about five miles south of Ishpeming. It is an open-pit truck and shovel mine whose concentrator feeds an on-site pellet plant, and its finished pellets leave by rail for a ship loading port at Marquette. Tilden's electricity comes under a 20-year energy agreement with WEC Energy Group, signed in August 2016. The agreement was built around 170 MW of new natural gas generation that WEC's Upper Michigan Energy Resources Corporation planned to build in the Upper Peninsula, with the plants expected to start operating in 2019.
Overview
Tilden Mine is located on the Marquette Iron Range in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, approximately five miles south of Ishpeming. The site is an open-pit truck and shovel mine. Its concentrator uses single-stage crushing, autogenous mills and flotation to produce hematite concentrate, which is supplied to the on-site pellet plant. The mine's product is iron ore pellets. Finished pellets are carried on the LS&I rail line to a ship loading port at Marquette. Cleveland-Cliffs became sole owner of the mine in 2017, and the company's September 2025 fact sheet describes these operations as current.
Profile
- Power contract with WEC Energy Group
- On August 15, 2016, Cleveland-Cliffs announced a new 20-year energy agreement with WEC Energy Group to provide Tilden with a long-term, reliable and affordable source of electrical power. Under the agreement, WEC Energy Group, through the proposed Upper Michigan Energy Resources Corporation, planned to construct, own and operate 170 MW of new natural gas generating capacity across two sites in the Upper Peninsula. The facilities were expected to commence operation in 2019, in advance of the retirement of the Presque Isle Power Plant on the shore of Lake Superior.
- Why the power matters to the mine
- Cleveland-Cliffs said the agreement gives Tilden a stable, long-term source of power, and that Tilden would continue to be the most operationally efficient producer of pellets for the domestic steel industry. AIST reported that the 20-year agreement with WEC would provide the Michigan mine with reliable and affordable electricity. Cliffs also described the deal as a way to resolve long-term energy reliability issues for Upper Peninsula residents, tying the mine's power supply to the region's wider generation plan.
Facility
- Activity
- Iron ore pellets
- Industry
- Mining
- Site type
- Facility
- Operating status
- Operating
Related records
Timeline
- Aug 15, 2016
- Cleveland-Cliffs announced a 20-year energy agreement with WEC Energy Group for the Tilden Mine, backed by 170 MW of planned new gas generation
Cliffs Natural Resources Announces New Energy Agreement with WEC Energy Group for its Tilden Mine in Michigan :: Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (CLF)
Sources
d1io3yog0oux5.cloudfront.netd1io3yog0oux5.cloudfront.netSource