British Steel is considering plans to move steelmaking to Teesside, North-East England, after proposals to reduce carbon emissions at its 19th-century works in Scunthorpe failed to materialize.
The Chinese-owned company is understood to be exploring the feasibility of building a low-emissions furnace in Teesside in a bid to unlock hundreds of millions of pounds of UK state aid.
British Steel, bought out of bankruptcy by Jingye more than three years ago, has been exploring plans to convert traditional blast furnace production to electric arc furnace (EAF) technology at a cost of more than £1 billion.
''As part of our journey to net zero, it is prudent to evaluate different operational scenarios to help us achieve our ambitious goals.”
Spokesman for British Steel
A spokesman for British Steel told The Times: “While decarbonization is a major challenge for our business, we’re committed to transforming British Steel into a green and sustainable company providing long-term, skilled and well-paid careers for thousands of employees and many more in our supply chains. As part of our journey to net zero, it is prudent to evaluate different operational scenarios to help us achieve our ambitious goals.”
The reports come a week after a £100m-plus deal was struck to use British Steel on one the world’s biggest offshore wind plants being built at Teesworks. The 800-metre-long building will be the world’s biggest monopile facility when complete and is the first of its kind in the UK.
Source: The Times