A North-American Milestone: The first Chinamax Vessel will be Loaded in the Port of Sept-Îles

CSB_Years_1SEPT-ÎLES, October 16, 2013 – Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) (Paris: CLF) (“Cliffs”) and the Port of Sept-Îles, announce that for the first time in North-America, a Chinamax type vessel will be loaded in the Bay of Sept-Îles, and will transport 300,000 metric tons of iron ore concentrate from Cliffs’ mine in Bloom Lake, to Asia.

“Cliffs’ team is proud of this historical milestone in North America,” said Don Gallagher, executive vice president and president – global operations of Cliffs. “This first shipment of iron ore product via Chinamax for our customer Wisco, is consistent with Cliffs’ core value of environmental stewardship and operational efficiencies. The technology and loading capacity (over 300,000 metric tons) of these larger vessels will allow us to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as well as maritime traffic and enhance our competitiveness within the global iron ore market. It is exciting to see this new access road between Sept-Îles and Asia finally come to fruition.”

“We are witnessing a historical turning point today: the opening of our Port to the next generation of ore vessels of the planet. We must congratulate the initiative of our partner, Cliffs Natural Resources, who made this possible,” said the president & CEO of the Port of Sept-Îles, Pierre D. Gagnon.

About CSB Years

The CSB Years is a “Chinamax” type bulk vessel, with a loading capacity of 330,000 metric tons, measuring 330 meters long and 31.3 meters high. The CSB Years was registered in Hong Kong in January 2012 by the company Nianhua Shipping SA.

About Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.

Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is an international mining and natural resources company. A member of the S&P 500 Index, the Company is a major global iron ore producer and a significant producer of high-and low-volatile metallurgical coal. Cliffs’ strategy is to continually achieve greater scale and diversification in the mining industry through a focus on serving the world’s largest and fastest growing steel markets. Driven by the core values of social, environmental and capital stewardship, Cliffs associates across the globe endeavor to provide all stakeholders operating and financial transparency.

The Company is organized through a global commercial group responsible for sales and delivery of Cliffs’ products and a global operations group responsible for the production of the minerals the Company markets. Cliffs operates iron ore and coal mines in North America and an iron ore mining complex in Western Australia. In addition, Cliffs has a major chromite project, in the feasibility stage of development, located in Ontario, Canada.

News releases and other information on the Company are available on the Internet at:
http://www.cliffsnaturalresources.com.

About the Port of Sept-Îles

Boasting a variety of state-of-the-art facilities, the Port of Sept-Îles is the leading iron ore port in North America, with an annual volume of nearly 30 million tons. Sept-Îles’ port facilities play a vital and strategic role in the operation of many businesses from the region’s primary sector. The Port’s annual economic impact is estimated at nearly $1 billion, with some 4,000 direct and indirect jobs. Through its activity, the Port of Sept-Îles therefore remains a significant source of wealth creation in Quebec and the rest of Canada.

News releases and other information are available on the Internet at: http://retd.ca/pdsi.

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CSB Years Specifications

Le Port de Sept-Îles répond à Cliffs / Wabush

Sept-Îles, October 7, 2013 – In response to the lawsuit filed on July 29 by Wabush Mines and its managing agent, Cliffs Mining Company, the Port of Sept-Îles filed a Statement of Defense with the Superior Court of the District of Mingan today in order to set the record straight and state its case.

The Port still believes that the parties need to reach an agreement on opening up Pointe-Noire port facilities to accommodate other companies that wish to use them.

Since 1998, the Port has invested over $33 million in the Pointe-Noire dock in order to increase the port’s capacity to accommodate Wabush Mines and also to honor requests from other companies that would like to use the port. The Port has also joined forces with private partners and the Canadian government to invest $220 million to build a new port terminal for the Quebec and Labrador mining industry.

Port president and CEO Pierre D. Gagnon would therefore like the parties to come back to the negotiating table so that Wabush Mines and the Port can meet their respective goals and assure that Pointe-Noire port facilities can be developed to accommodate new users and boost the economies of Quebec and Labrador.

Out of respect for the court, the Port of Sept-Îles will not be granting interviews regarding this case.ABOUT

THE PORT OF SEPT-ÎLES

Boasting a variety of state-of-the-art facilities, the Port of Sept-Îles is the leading iron ore port in North America, with an annual volume of nearly 30 million tons. Sept-Îles’ port facilities play a vital and strategic role in the operation of many businesses from the region’s primary sector. The Port’s annual economic impact is estimated at nearly $1 billion, with some 4,000 direct and indirect jobs. Through its activity, the Port of Sept-Îles therefore remains a significant source of wealth creation in Quebec and the rest of Canada.

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