Photo of Hibbing Taconit’s Hull-Rust Mahoning mine in Hibbing, Minn. by Lars Hammar via Flickr

“The open-market price for taconite dropped nearly $80 a ton over the past two years, global demand for ore and steel is sluggish, and at least one Minnesota producer is planning to scale back in 2013.

“But, despite some signs of trouble, Minnesota’s taconite plants are on pace to produce slightly more of the concentrated iron ore in 2012 than they did the year before — 39.2 million tons, up a bit from 39 million, said Bob Wagstrom, who tracks taconite production for the Minnesota Department of Revenue,” via Duluth News Tribune.