Steel Mills

Nippon's Mori meets with Pa. Gov. Shapiro: Report

Written by Ethan Bernard

November 21, 2024

Nippon Steel Vice Chairman and EVP Takahiro Mori met on Tuesday with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, according to a report in Bloomberg.

The article, posted on Tuesday before the meeting, said Mori was going to discuss the ramifications of Nippon’s proposed deal to buy U.S. Steel, as well as its effect on unions. (The United Steelworkers union has been vehemently opposed to the merger.)

The meeting was important, according to the report, because Shapiro is close to President Biden (who is opposed to the deal). The article added that Shapiro hasn’t publicly expressed support or opposition to the deal.

A spokesman for Nippon declined to comment on the meeting with SMU on Thursday.

In a separate article on Wednesday, the Pittsburgh-Gazette reported on a leaked letter from Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward (R-Greensburg) to Gov. Shapiro.

In it, she said, “Your engagement as governor is critical to ensuring the federal government understands the stakes for Pennsylvania. Equally important, the people whose jobs depend on the success of U.S. Steel need to hear from you.”

This comes as we near a decision from the US Committee on Foreign Investment’s (CFIUS) national security review, which will decide on the deal’s fate. Recall that Nippon has said a decision is expected by the end of December on its $14.9-billion offer for Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel.

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is managing editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years, starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA. in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.

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