Hibbing Taconite Property (HibTac) Feasibility Study: $269M NPV Over a 5-Year Mine Life
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.'s Hibbing Taconite Property (HibTac) in USA, Minnesota (St. Louis and Itasca Counties, Mesabi Iron Range) has a Feasibility Study outlining an after-tax NPV of $269M. The mine plan runs 5 years at about 6.3 MWLT (wet pellets) per year.
Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.'s Hibbing Taconite Property (HibTac) has reported Feasibility Study results for the iron ore (magnetite / taconite pellets) project in USA, Minnesota (St. Louis and Itasca Counties, Mesabi Iron Range). The study headlines an after-tax net present value of $269M at a 10% discount rate. It reflects Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.'s (CLF) latest disclosed economics for the asset.
Economics. The after-tax NPV is $269M using a 10% discount rate. Economics are based on Three-Year Trailing Average Revenue of $98/WLT pellet (wet pellet price); iron ore pellet price assumption.
Production and mine plan. The project envisions an open-pit operation. Life of mine is 5 years. Average annual production is approximately 6.3 MWLT (wet pellets). Average head grade is 18.7% MagFe (crude ore). Metallurgical recovery averages 25.5%. The open-pit strip ratio is 1.0.
Resources and ownership. The company holds a 85.3% interest in the project.
These figures are extracted from Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.'s technical disclosures and reflect the most recent Feasibility Study on file. Compare this project against other developers and producers in our project economics database, and always verify the numbers against the original technical report before making any investment decision.
Reserves & Resources
| Category | Tonnage | Grade | Contained |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proven | 100.1 MLT | 18.7% MagFe | 25.5 MWLT wet pellets (process recovery 25.4%) |
| Probable | 9.1 MLT | 18.7% MagFe | 2.3 MWLT wet pellets (process recovery 25.6%) |
| Proven & Probable | 109.3 MLT | 18.7% MagFe | 27.8 MWLT wet pellets (process recovery 25.5%); Cliffs attributed 93.2 MLT crude ore, 23.7 MWLT pellets |
| Category | Tonnage | Grade | Contained |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measured | 10.1 MLT | 19.2% MagFe | 2.6 MWLT pellets (process recovery 25.4%); Cliffs attributed 8.6 MLT crude ore, 2.2 MWLT pellets |
| Indicated | 0.6 MLT | 18.7% MagFe | 0.1 MWLT pellets (process recovery 25.0%); Cliffs attributed 0.5 MLT crude ore, 0.1 MWLT pellets |
| Measured & Indicated | 10.7 MLT | 19.2% MagFe | 2.7 MWLT pellets (process recovery 25.4%); Cliffs attributed 9.1 MLT crude ore, 2.3 MWLT pellets |
Our Analysis
- NPV after-tax
- $269M
higher than 34% of 462 projects we track
- Mine life
- 5yrs
- Study price assumption
- Three-Year Trailing Average Revenue of $98/WLT pellet (wet pellet price); iron ore pellet price assumption
Among the 462 projects we track across all commodities, this one's after-tax NPV of $269M ranks above only about a third of them. That is the honest starting point: a feasibility-stage iron ore operation on Minnesota's Mesabi Iron Range that clears more of the field than it misses, but sits firmly in the middle rather than at the front. For an investor, the rank matters less as a scoreboard than as a signal about where this sits in the opportunity set, and the answer is: solid, unremarkable, not a project you own for the outlier return.
The feasibility study is what gives these numbers their weight. A build-ready estimate carries a plus or minus 15% band, so the NPV, the capital cost and the operating assumptions have earned more confidence than a scoping or pre-feasibility pass would allow. That cuts both ways: less room for the upside surprise a PEA can imply, but also less risk that the economics unravel on the next update. The study prices pellets off a three-year trailing average revenue of $98 per wet tonne, a backward-looking assumption that removes some of the guesswork but also some of the leverage to a rising price.
The constraint that decides this is scale against the company. A $269M NPV sits well below a US$7.13B market cap, so this project is a modest contributor inside a six-project portfolio, not a company-maker. The five-year mine life compounds that: a short, capital-intensive operation with limited years to earn back its build. The question that settles it is whether a mid-cap with five other projects will prioritise the capital to build a short-life asset whose value is already small relative to its own equity.
Our take, benchmarked against the project economics in the Mining Stocks database. Figures are estimates drawn from company technical reports — not investment advice; always verify against the source filing.