Nippon Steel Announces Plan to Modernize U.S. Steel Plants

The money, however, depends on whether the Japanese steel company actually acquires U.S. Steel. Despite striking a deal with the American company in late 2023, Nippon Steel’s $14 billion bid has come under political and regulatory scrutiny. The union representing U.S. Steel workers and both major presidential candidates oppose the deal.

The United Steelworkers union is advocating for the company to be purchased by Ohio rival Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc. instead of Nippon Steel. In an Aug. 28 statement, union president David McCall noted that the promised funds from Nippon Steel are nonbinding.

“A press release is not a contract,” he said, calling on Nippon Steel to “respond to urgent concerns about our critical supply chains and national security.”

In January, former President and Republican candidate Donald Trump opposed the deal in remarks after a meeting with the head of the Teamsters union. Trump, who has championed aggressive tariff policies during his term, said he would “block it immediately.”

And on Labor Day, his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, echoed President Biden’s position against the purchase. She said during a campaign in Pittsburgh: “US Steel should remain American-owned and American-operated.”