What is Happening to American Manufacturing? Articles, Facts and News from "Making Steel" Author Mark Reutter

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ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN THE BALTIMORE BREW

Up-to-date reporting on Sparrows Point and Severstal, Chesapeake Bay pollution and Baltimore history and miscellany.

ALEXEI MORDASHOV AND SPARROWS POINT

Portrait of the Point and its enigmatic owner as both face deepening economic, labor, and environmental challenges (Baltimore Brew, 2/16/10)

Sparrows Point furnace fire more serious than publicly reported

A September explosion that sent hundred-foot flames, burning debris and dirty gases out of a furnace at Severstal Sparrows Point was more serious than the company had publicly reported — but a spokesperson said the company does not expect to be fined.

Steel in Crisis: Special Report

One third of workforce may be laid off at Sparrows Point
About 125 supervisors and salaried employees will be terminated at the Sparrows Point steel mill, the first element of a restructuring plan that may claim 600 more jobs by the end of 2009. (9/17/09)

Follow-Up: Sparrows Point Furnace to Stay Open for Now
Severstal agrees to keep "L" blast furnace running through August at reduced output.(7/10/09)

Follow-Up: Is Time Running Out for Lakshmi Mittal?
Standard & Poor’s thinks so. The agency has downgraded ArcelorMittal’s credit rating to just above “junk” status. How crushing debt, low cash flow, and labor discontent weigh on the Steel King. (6/8/09)

Part 1: Free Fallin'
At least $600 billion of market value has vanished since June. How the marriage of a mature industry with “hot money” finance set the stage for disaster. (4/7/09)

Part 2: The Noose
The world’s biggest steelmaker faces a liquidity squeeze as the bill for Lakshmi Mittal’s buying spree comes due. (4/7/09)

Part 3: Sparrows Point's Owner Mauled
Russian oligarch Alexei Mordashov overbuys on the eve of the recession. (4/7/09; Updated 5/7 and 5/8/2009)

Chart 1: Hard Times
A collapse felt around the world.

Chart 2: Spinning Wheels
Detroit stops buying steel.

Chart 3: The Market Crash
Highs and lows by company.

Part 4: Memo to President Obama
How to get steel back on solid footing with green technology. (5/28/09)

Pollution

Fire and Debris Erupt from Sparrows Point
A "furnace slip," caused by a buildup of pressure, releases hot gases and iron wastes into the atmosphere. (9/30/09)

Chemical pollution in Baltimore Harbor near Sparrows Point appears to be rising, despite court-ordered cleanup (6/22/09)

Sparrows Point's failure to clean up contaminated soil and ground water, the subject of a threatened lawsuit by Maryland environmentalists, is part of a long history of greenlighting pollution by state re gulators. (5/31/09)

Lewis Kaden

REVERSAL OF FORTUNE
Kaden keeps his job, avoids having to testify in Washington. (5/20/10)

KADEN DEMOTED
The savvy corporate lawyer clings to his Citi job. (1/22/10)

Poor Marks for Kaden
An outside review of Citigroup management has fingered Lewis Kaden for his poor performance. Will the “consummate insider” survive? (10/8/09)

BusinessWeek Denies Lifting Material from MakingSteel.com
Editor-in-chief defends magazine's profile of Lewis Kaden and says it didn't have "an obligation to credit you." (9/9/09)

Portrait of Lewis Kaden, the politically connected lawyer and ArcelorMittal director who is a key figure in Citigroup’s financial crisis (5/4/09)