Iron Maidens Another loaded taconite train leaves the massive Cleveland-Cliffs Incorporated’s Fairlane Processing Plant, in Forbes, Minnesota, headed to the docks in Duluth for shipment to several steel mills in the eastern United States. Originally built for the Ford Motor Company this facility along creates a staggering 5.3 million long tons of taconite pellets per year from 15 million long tons of open-pit iron ore mining at the adjacent Thunderbird Mine in Eveleth, Minnesota, one of the largest mines in the world. Taconite is the key building block in the making of steel. A 24/7 365 day cycle of mining, refining and shipping, all connected by rail and delivered to the giant ports in Duluth and Two Harbors, Minnesota where ships move the material across the Great Lakes to all points east for the steel mills.