The Severstal Group will invest up to $250 million to upgrade its steel mill facility in Dearborn, retaining a total of 11,300 Michigan jobs including 2,005 directly by the company. Assistance offered through the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) helped convince the company to choose Michigan over competing sites in other states.

The Severstal Group is a major steel manufacturer based in Russia, with locations in 14 Russian Federation states. It is the 18th largest steel company in the world, and employs approximately 150,000 people worldwide. To establish a presence in the North American market, the company acquired Dearborn's Rouge Steel in April 2004.

The MEDC approved a Single Business Tax credit valued at more than $28.7 million over 20 years to win the project. The city of Dearborn has approved a 50 percent abatement of the steel producer's new real and personal property taxes for 12 years valued at approximately $19 million.

"Severstal's investments in its Dearborn steel making facilities will focus on maintaining and modernizing the company's primary steel making operations, installing new pollution control equipment and modernizing the company's cold rolling and finishing equipment to provide our automotive customers with the steel products of the future that they are seeking," Mr. Vadim A. Makhov, chairman of the Board of Directors of Severstal North America, said.

A University of Michigan economic analysis estimates that 9,295 spin-off jobs will be retained as a result of increased economic activity associated with Severstal's expansion, in addition to the 2,005 jobs retained directly by the company. The project is expected to generate more than $11.9 billion in personal income for Michigan workers over the life of the tax credit.

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation, a partnership between the state and local communities, promotes smart economic growth by developing strategies and providing services to create and retain good jobs and a high quality of life.