Joly consults lawyers over the Stelco owner's remarks as a deadline looms

Industry Minister Mélanie Joly says Ottawa is examining the legal implications of what Cleveland-Cliffs chief executive Lourenco Goncalves said in a televised interview Tuesday. She says his “confessions” could influence the government's enforcement action.

Goncalves said he bought Stelco because it was flooding the US market and undercutting prices. He added that he intends to sell it in about a year, now that he is “persona non grata” in Canada.

Background

Cleveland-Cliffs announced on Sep 28 that it would lay off up to 500 workers at Hamilton Works and Lake Erie Works in Nanticoke, Ontario. Its owner faces a deadline to show how it will honour its job commitments.