A pair of Mon Valley-area mayors are celebrating a major moment for Western Pennsylvania industry as the Trump administration announced on Friday another hurdle to Nippon Steel’s planned acquisition of U.S. Steel has been cleared.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order that says the deal can go through so long as the Japanese company complies with a “national security agreement.”

The order, posted on whitehouse.gov, did not provide terms of the agreement.

However, the companies said in a joint statement that the agreement establishes about $11 billion in new investments that will be made by 2028.

Investments include a greenfield project.

The agreement also reportedly includes an American CEO, an American-majority board and a “golden share.” which requires U.S. government approval of a number of the board members that allows the U.S. to ensure that production levels aren’t cut.

“We thank President Trump and his Administration for their bold leadership and strong support for our historic partnership,” the joint statement read.

“This partnership will bring a massive investment that will support our communities and families for generations to come. We look forward to putting our commitments into action to make American steelmaking and manufacturing great again.”

The companies have completed a U.S. Justice Department review and received all necessary regulatory approvals, according to the joint statement.

Clairton Mayor Rich Lattanzi, a retired U.S. Steel employee who spent decades at the Irvin Works, took a moment from being out with family Friday evening to share his thoughts.

“This has been a long, drawn-out process and I and some other mayors contributed to the ongoing process of meetings, support letters and media influence,” Lattanzi said. “Nippon, from day one, presented the best deal possible that provided a detailed plan to invest, honor good-paying jobs and provide environmental improvements.”

Lattanzi said he looks forward to seeing what impact the combined efforts of Nippon and U.S. Steel will have on the area.

“For towns like mine, Clairton and the Mon Valley, this will provide the tax base necessary to ensure that our town can survive and grow,” Lattanzi said. “More important, as a third generation steelworker this will provide good jobs and benefits for my kids, grandkids and their kids. This is a blessing and, actually, a bit of history.

“We were at a turning point for steelmaking,” Lattanzi said. “Trump came through and stuck his neck out, and this will be a time in history that cultivates the strength of steelmaking and helping America build its future. I am so proud to be a part of US Steel/Nippon and the mayor of the town with the largest coke plant in America.”

West Mifflin Mayor Chris Kelly said Friday he hosted countless meetings of local, state and federal officials as well as union leaders, U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel upper management in his garage.

“It’s been an unbelievable roller coaster,” Kelly said. “We thought we had the deal locked up several times, then something would throw a roadblock in it.

“As mayors we had very little power, but we supported it through state and federal individuals and hosting a lot of events. … It is the single largest investment in commonwealth history.”

Kelly highlighted the professionalism and courteousness of Nippon leaders during those visits.

“They are absolutely wonderful people to host,” he said. “It’s just been very pleasurable, and I can see the commitment and the same concerns that U.S. Steel had about our communities. … You can imagine the size of the document when you’re talking about almost $15 billion. It is estimated that this transaction is going to save and create almost 100,000 jobs.”

Kelly said he was on the phone with union leaders earlier in the day.

“They’re ecstatic,” Kelly said. “They are busy notifying all their membership that this has been finalized. It’s a big sigh of relief.”

Trump hosted a rally May 30 at U.S. Steel Irvin Works. It was called a victory lap by some attendees for supporters of the company’s $14 billion partnership with Nippon.

He announced several pieces of the overall arrangement between the two manufacturing titans at the event.

Among the details: $2.2 billion to “increase steel production in the Mon Valley,” $200 million for a research and development center in collaboration with Carnegie Mellon University and $7 billion for facilities in Alabama, Arkansas, Minnesota and Indiana.

At the rally, Takahiro Mori, vice chairman of Nippon Steel, told the crowd that his company has “deep respect for U.S. Steel and the role it played in building America.” He also thanked Trump for his blessing.

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