A federal bankruptcy judge has temporarily disallowed the state of Minnesota’s attempt to rescind mineral rights beneath Essar Steel Minnesota’s property in Nashwauk, Minn., the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported today. Gov. Mark Dayton (D) tried to take away mineral rights the state granted to Essar because the company failed to live up to its promises to build a taconite mining and processing facility in Nashwauk. “A judge in the federal bankruptcy court in Delaware today issued a ruling denying Minnesota’s request to remove mineral rights from Essar’s bankruptcy,” Minnesota Department of Natural Resources spokesman Chris Niskanen said Tuesday. The order is temporary, Niskanen explained. It gives Essar until February to prove to the judge that it can put together a financial plan that will let it finish the Nashwauk project while also paying off creditors.
