CLEVELAND, Jan. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) (Paris: CLF) today announced a comprehensive global reorganization that will realign global management responsibilities for its commercial sales and marketing, operating and corporate support.  

(Logo: https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101104/CLIFFSLOGO )

Joseph A. Carrabba, Cliffs' chairman, president and chief executive officer, said, "As illustrated by our recently announced agreement to acquire Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines (TSX: CLM), Cliffs is on an accelerated growth trajectory. The Company has reached a level of global scale that requires us to manage the business in a more progressive and pragmatic manner, as well as in a way that prepares our next generation of leaders. As our customers and suppliers continue to grow, there is a need for greater collaboration between our North American and Asia Pacific business units in terms of customer and supplier negotiations, marketing analysis and product transportation and logistics. There is also the opportunity to enhance the speed of best practices adoption across Cliffs' global portfolio of operating assets. Today's announcement marks a deliberate move away from regional management to truly integrated global management. This will enhance our ability to maximize shareholder value and to compete as a single, global Cliffs Natural Resources."

Mr. Carrabba continued to say that, in a transition as large and complex as today's reorganization announcement, there will be a number of additional changes at various levels of the organization to adapt to the global management structure. These additional changes will be made and announced as swiftly as possible.  

Effective immediately, Cliffs has reorganized its Executive Leadership Team (ELT) to include the following individuals, with the respective responsibilities:

Donald J. Gallagher is named Executive Vice President, President – Global Commercial – Mr. Gallagher, formerly president, North American Business Unit, now has commercial responsibility for all of Cliffs' global businesses including a newly created global strategic marketing function. His responsibilities include strategic customer alignment for sales of iron ore and coal, as well as emerging products such as ferroalloys, iron technologies and renewaFUEL. This includes all pricing, partnerships and leadership of sales teams. As indicated above, Cliffs will establish a global strategic marketing function, to report to Mr. Gallagher. This position will have responsibility for market research and analytics, including maximizing profitability of customer relationships. Mr. Gallagher will also create a global transportation and logistics function at Cliffs.

Duncan P. Price is named Executive Vice President, President – Global Operations – Mr. Price, formerly Cliffs' senior vice president, managing director, Asia Pacific Iron Ore, now has sole operating responsibility for all minerals and other products that Cliffs produces. Mr. Price will also provide leadership for safety, capital projects, cost management and continuous improvement. His span of responsibility will include all operations in the Company's global portfolio of controlled iron ore and coal interests in North America, Asia Pacific and Brazil, as well as leading emerging operating assets, including development projects in iron ore, ferrochrome, alternative iron technologies and renewaFUEL. With the recent announcement of the Consolidated Thompson transaction, Cliffs' global mine portfolio will include 10 iron ore facilities, six coal mines and a pre-feasibility chrome development project.  

Clifford Smith is named Senior Vice President, Global Business Development – Mr. Smith now has global responsibility for business development including the identification and evaluation of potential strategic transactions, valuation, due diligence and integration efforts, as well as resource evaluation/quantification. He will also provide executive leadership for Cliffs' portfolio of equity investments in non-controlled assets, including Sonoma Coal in Australia and the Amapa Iron Ore Project in Brazil. In addition, Mr. Smith will have executive responsibility for the Company's Global Exploration Group.    

Laurie Brlas will remain Executive Vice President, Finance and Administration & Chief Financial Officer – Ms. Brlas will maintain executive responsibility for all finance, accounting, strategic planning, global communications and investor relations, tax, treasury, information technology and human resources.

P. Kelly Tompkins will remain Executive Vice President, Legal, Government Affairs and Sustainability & Chief Legal Officer – Mr. Tompkins will maintain responsibility for all traditional corporate general counsel matters, Cliffs' ongoing relationships with all U.S. and international government and regulatory bodies, and the execution and reporting of the Company's increasingly critical sustainable development practices, including all environmental matters.

Mr. Carrabba added, "Each of the executives on the ELT understands we are operating in a global environment that requires us to think and act on a global basis—approaching every aspect of the business this way including pricing, sourcing and how we operate our portfolio of assets."  

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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, we are the largest producer of iron ore pellets in North America, a major supplier of direct-shipping lump and fines iron ore out of Australia and a significant producer of high and low volatile metallurgical coal. With core values of environmental and capital stewardship, our colleagues across the globe endeavor to provide all stakeholders operating and financial transparency as embodied in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework. Our Company is organized through three geographic business units:

The North American business unit is comprised of six iron ore mines owned or managed in Michigan, Minnesota and Canada and six coal mines located in West Virginia and Alabama. The Asia Pacific business unit is comprised of two iron ore mining complexes in Western Australia and a 45% economic interest in a coking and thermal coal mine in Queensland, Australia. The Latin American business unit includes a 30% interest in the Amapa Project, an iron ore project in the state of Amapa in Brazil.

Other projects under development include a biomass production plant in Michigan and Ring of Fire chromite properties in Ontario, Canada. Over recent years, Cliffs has been executing a strategy designed to achieve scale in the mining industry and focused on serving the world's largest and fastest growing steel markets.

News releases and other information on the Company are available on the Internet at:

http://www.cliffsnaturalresources.com or www.cliffsnaturalresources.com/Investors/Pages/default.aspx?b=1041&1=1

SOURCE Cliffs Natural Resources Inc.