“The sale of these assets to Mineral Resources marks Cliffs’ exit from the Australian iron ore business and represents the final step in the implementation of our U.S. iron ore centric strategy,” said Cliffs chairman and chief executive Lourenco Goncalves.

“We are pleased to have reached agreement on a transaction that not only brings real value to Cliffs shareholders, but also represents the potential for continued job opportunities for employees in Western Australia who would be impacted by the pending closure of the Koolyanobbing complex,” he added. 

Cliffs in January announced that it would likely close the mine by the end of this year, saying that it was reaching the end of its life. It later announced that it would halt operations at the end of this month, throwing scores of mining and logistics jobs into jeopardy.

Although Cliffs didn’t disclose a selling price, it said it expects to reduce the cost of closing the operation by US$65 million to US$75 million.