U.S. Steel’s rejection of a $7.3 billion buyout proposal from a rival this weekend – one of several offers the company says it has received – has an indirect connection to one of the company’s Alabama projects.

On Sunday, the Pittsburgh-based company confirmed in a statement a $7.3 billion buyout proposal from Cleveland-Cliffs, which it said was one of “multiple unsolicited proposals that ranged from the acquisition of certain production assets to consideration for the whole company.”

U.S. Steel rejected the offer, according to its statement, because Cleveland-Cliffs wanted the company to accept the terms without being allowed to conduct standard due diligence.

The Associated Press quoted U.S. Steel CEO David Burritt as saying the offers are “a validation of U.S. Steel’s strategy” of transformation, including expanding its electric arc furnace steelmaking and finishing capabilities.

Fairfield is the site of one of those strategies, with the $412 million electric arc furnace that began production in 2020, which can produce as much as 1.6 million tons of steel a year.

The project was originally shut down in Dec. 2015 due to unfavorable market conditions, but was announced again in 2019.

The furnace employs a mix of mini-mill and integrated mill technology, the company says. Electric arc furnaces make steel from melted scrap metal instead of iron ore and can operate with fewer workers. They are also easier to stop and restart than traditional blast furnaces that must operate continuously to avoid damage, making them flexible to market demands.

Fairfield eventually lost out last year to Arkansas as the site for a $3 billion mini-mill project with U.S. Steel.

The company, founded in 1901, has deep roots in Alabama and was once the largest employer in Birmingham, with about 15,000 people on the payroll at its peak.

A deal with Cleveland-Cliffs would reduce the number of major American steel companies to three. According to The Wall Street Journal, U.S. Steel, Cleveland-Cliffs, Nucor and Steel Dynamics account for most of the steel produced in the U.S. However, both Cleveland-Cliffs and U.S. Steel are considered the high-cost producers.