????過去八年，莫爾達索夫已投入14億美元對Rouge老廠進行翻新，工廠現名為謝韋爾鋼鐵迪爾伯恩工廠（Severstal Dearborn）。“綠色科技是未來，”他說，“該廠正在為節能汽車制造鋼鐵?！?/p>

????謝韋爾鋼鐵是制造超高強度輕質鋼材的先行者，這類鋼材通過降低汽車自重提高單位油耗行駛里程，但同時滿足最嚴格的碰撞標準。這項計劃是如此吸引人，以至于美國能源部（Department of Energy）都初步批準了為迪爾伯恩工廠高端鋼材擴產提供7.40億美元貸款，但讓莫爾達索夫大感意外的是今年1月份美國能源部取消了這一貸款許諾。

????“我們正在尋找擴產所需資金，希望填上美國能源部留下的缺口?！蹦獱栠_索夫說，“我們的迪爾伯恩工廠早已開始生產輕質鋼材，但要滿足未來為達到燃油標準、美國所需的產能還遠遠不夠?！?/p>

????鑒于莫爾達索夫在美國投資鋼鐵行業遭受的巨額損失，他對于鋼鐵行業以及美國的前景依然如此樂觀，實在是難能可貴。2008年初當市場處于巔峰時，謝韋爾鋼鐵出資26億美元在俄亥俄州、西弗吉尼亞州和馬里蘭州購買了3家鋼鐵廠。當經濟衰退重擊鋼鐵銷量和價格時，莫爾達索夫大幅削減產量，并將3家鋼鐵廠掛牌出售。2011年3月，他將這三家廠賣給了采礦業富豪、以長島大宅著稱的艾拉?倫內特控制的公司，售價僅8,000萬美元，三年內損失超過25億美元。

????莫爾達索夫決定集中投資兩家鋼鐵廠：受益于汽車行業復蘇的迪爾伯恩工廠，和謝韋爾鋼鐵投資15億美元、在密西西比州哥倫布新建的工廠。莫爾達索夫說，密西西比新廠將成為美國南部汽車制造企業的領先供應商。

????莫爾達索夫認為，最最糟糕的是很多人對美國的未來仍過于悲觀。“近來我們已經看到美國經濟有顯著改觀，但這一點沒有被很好地認識?！彼f，“美國在提高生產率方面做得很好。迪爾伯恩工廠正在用更少的員工制造更多鋼鐵。工會接受了優化的工作條例。產業復蘇正在發生，但人們對此認識不足。”

????他還指出了第二項重大改觀是能源成本顯著下降?！斑@是由于頁巖氣革命。我知道有位俄羅斯企業家打算在美國南部建一家化肥廠，因為那里的能源成本如此低廉。”謝韋爾鋼鐵部分持股的一家工業園區正在吸引密西西比州當地的鋼鐵加工公司入駐，這是當前全美情形的一個縮影。

????在莫爾達索夫同我輕輕握手道別時，他說，“美國最需要保留的就是企業家精神。這為創造就業提供了原動力。這創造了美國人重要的生命品質?！?/p>

????阿列克謝?莫爾達索夫相信，建立在偉大制造業之上的這個帝國將迎來一片新天地。

????譯者：早稻米

????In the past eight years, Mordashov has poured $1.4 billion into refurbishing the former Rouge plant, now called Severstal Dearborn. "The future is in green energy," he says, "it's in making steel for energy-efficient cars."

????Severstal is a pioneer in producing extra-strong but lightweight steel that improves gas mileage by reducing the vehicles' weight, but also meets the most stringent crash standards. Its initiative so impressed the Department of Energy that it gave preliminary approval for a $740 million loan to expand Dearborn's advanced steel output, but to Mordashov's shock, canceled the commitment in January.

????"We're now looking for financing we didn't get from the DOE to expand production," says Mordashov. "We're already making the lightweight steel at Dearborn, but the U.S. will need far more production in the future to meet fuel standards."

????Given his big losses in the U.S., it's remarkable that Mordashov remains so optimistic about the future of steel -- and America. At the top of the market in early 2008, Severstal paid $2.6 billion for plants in Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland. When the recession pounded both volumes and prices, Mordashov slashed production and put the mills up for sale. In March of 2011, he sold all three to companies controlled by mining magnate Ira Rennert, renowned for his gigantic "house that ate the Hamptons" on Long Island. The price: just $80 million, leaving a loss of over $2.5 billion in just three years.

????Mordashov decided to concentrate Severstal's dollars on two mills, the Dearborn facility because it benefits from the resurgence of the auto industry, and a new, $1.5 billion mill that Severstal recently opened in Columbus, Mississippi. The Mississippi plant, says Mordashov, will also become a leading supplier to automakers in the southern U.S.

????Most of all, Mordashov reckons that many people are far too glum about America's future. "We've seen a significant change in the U.S. economy recently, and it's not well understood," he says. "The U.S. has done a great job improving productivity. We're making a lot more steel in Dearborn with fewer people. The unions have accepted much better work rules. An industrial renaissance is happening, and it's underestimated."

????He also notes a second big improvement, a major reduction in energy costs. "It's because of the shale gas revolution. I know a Russian entrepreneur who wants to build a fertilizer plant in the southern U.S. because energy costs are so low." An industrial park, part-owned by Severstal, is attracting local steel fabrication companies in Mississippi, epitomizing what's happening all over America.

????As Mordashov gives me a parting, buzz-saw handshake, he says, "What you need to keep most in the U.S. is the entrepreneurial spirit. It provides the impetus for job creation. It has created a great quality of life for Americans."

????Alexey Mordashov is convinced that an empire built on great manufacturing is poised to strike again.