Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) risk factors, FY2024 10-K

Other

1. 01The volatility of commodity prices, including steel, scrap metal and iron ore, directly and indirectly affects our ability to generate revenue, maintain stable cash flows and fund our operations
2. 02We sell a significant portion of our steel products to the automotive market, and fluctuations or changes in the automotive market could adversely affect our business operations and financial performance
3. 03Global steelmaking overcapacity and overproduction, steel imports, and oversupply of iron ore could lead to lower or more volatile global steel and iron ore prices, directly or indirectly impacting our profitability
4. 04Severe financial hardship or bankruptcy of one or more of our major customers or key vendors could adversely affect our business operations and financial performance
5. 05U.S. government actions and other countries’ reactions in respect of trade agreements and treaties, laws, regulations, or policies affecting trade could lead to lower or more volatile global steel prices, impacting our profitability
6. 06We are subject to extensive governmental regulation, which imposes potentially significant costs and liabilities on us. Future laws and regulations or the way they are interpreted and enforced could increase these costs and liabilities or limit our ability to produce our raw materials and products
7. 07Our operations use hazardous materials and inadvertently may impact the environment, which could result in material liabilities to us
8. 08We may be unable to obtain, maintain, renew or comply with permits and licenses necessary for our operations or be required to provide additional financial assurances, which could reduce our production, cash flows, profitability and available liquidity
9. 09Our actual operating results may differ significantly from our guidance
10. 10We may be subject to various lawsuits, claims, arbitrations or governmental proceedings that could result in significant expenditures
11. 11Our operating expenses could increase significantly if the prices of raw materials, electrical power, fuel or other energy sources increase
12. 12Our sales and competitive position depend on transporting our products to customers at competitive rates and in a timely manner, and our ability to optimize our operational footprint depends on predictably and cost effectively moving products and raw materials internally among our facilities
13. 13The cost or time to implement a strategic or sustaining capital project may prove to be greater than originally anticipated
14. 14Natural or human-caused disasters, weather conditions, disruption of energy, unanticipated geological conditions, equipment failures, infectious disease outbreaks and other unexpected events may lead our customers, our suppliers, or our facilities to curtail production or shut down operations
15. 15A disruption in or failure of our IT systems, including those related to cybersecurity, could adversely affect our business operations, reputation and financial performance and could expose us to third-party liability
16. 16The closure of an operating facility or mine entails substantial costs. If our assumptions underlying our accruals for closure costs prove to be inaccurate or we prematurely close one or more of our facilities or mines, our results of operations and financial condition would likely be adversely affected
17. 17We incur certain costs when production capacity is idled, as well as increased costs to resume production at previously idled facilities
18. 18We face ongoing risks relating to the recent Stelco Acquisition
19. 19We may not have adequate insurance coverage for some business risks
20. 20V. SUSTAINABILITY AND DEVELOPMENT RISKS
21. 21To maintain consistent operational performance and foster growth in our businesses, we must maintain our social license to operate with our stakeholders
22. 22We rely on estimates of our recoverable mineral reserves, which are complex due to geological characteristics of the properties and the number of assumptions made
23. 23Defects in title or loss of any access rights or leasehold or option interests in mining properties could limit our ability to mine these properties or result in significant unanticipated costs
24. 24We depend on our senior management team and other key employees, and the loss of these employees could adversely affect our businesses
25. 25Our profitability could be adversely affected if we fail to maintain satisfactory labor relations
26. 26Our expenditures for pension and OPEB obligations could be materially higher than we have predicted if our underlying assumptions differ from actual outcomes, there are regulatory changes or the funded status of the multiemployer plans that we participate in degrade
27. 27We may encounter labor shortages for critical operational positions, which could adversely affect our ability to produce our products