British steelmakers are being backed today by the Government as the Business Secretary launches the Plan for Steel Consultation.
This will look at the long-term issues facing the industry like high electricity costs, unfair trading practices, and scrap metal recycling – to protect jobs and living standards in the UK’s industrial heartlands.
Up to £2.5 billion will be put towards supporting the steel industry, as per the manifesto commitment, including via the National Wealth Fund. This could benefit regions across the UK – like Scunthorpe, Rotherham, Redcar, Yorkshire, and Scotland – which have a strong history of steel production. It will be spent on initiatives that will give the industry a long future – such as electric arc furnaces, or other improvements to UK capabilities.
This will drive growth in the economy – the priority of the Plan for Change – and protect our industrial heartlands for the long term.
But the Government is wasting no time in taking immediate action to support the industry. Just this week, Heathrow Airport announced a multimillion-pound investment, which will require 400,000 tonnes of steel – enough to build the Empire State Building.
This will give the industry a strong pipeline of business that will secure supply chains for years to come – and will drive economic growth as part of our Plan for Change.
This week the Government also simplified public procurement and aligned it with the Government’s missions, including the Industrial Strategy, to put UK firms – like the steel industry - in the best possible position to compete for and win public contracts.
That is on top of delivering a better deal for Port Talbot within weeks of taking office which will transform production at Port Talbot and deliver a modern Electric Arc Furnace, and implementing the British Industry Supercharger which will cut electricity costs for steel firms and bring prices more in line with international competitors.
This delivers on a manifesto commitment to secure the future of Britain’s steel industries – building on initiatives like the £22 billion investment in Carbon Capture Usage and Storage in Teesside and Merseyside – because the country’s industrial heartlands are too important to Britain’s heritage and will be supported by this Government.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, said: “The UK steel industry has a long-term future under this Government. We said that during the election, and we are delivering on it now.
“The deal announced by Heathrow will secure a strong industry pipeline for years to come - and we are putting the full weight of Whitehall behind the industry to build on this success.
“Britain is open for business, and this Government has committed up to £2.5 billion to the future of steel to protect our industrial heartlands, maintain jobs, and drive growth as part of our Plan for Change.”
The Plan for Steel will help with the issues which have been holding the industry back for too long. It will look at ways to:
- Identify where there are opportunities to expand UK steelmaking to better support UK manufacturing, construction, infrastructure and growth – and secure UK jobs and livelihoods
- Protect the steel sector from unfair trading practices abroad
- Improve our scrap processing facilities so they can best support the steel-making of the future
- Encourage high usage of UK-made steel in public projects
To make the UK competitive globally, the Plan for Steel will examine the electricity costs for steel companies.
The Plan will also look at ways to improve the UK’s scrap metal processing capabilities, in light of the industry’s ongoing transition to electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking which recycles scrap steel by melting it to produce high-quality steel and other metals.
It will assess the UK’s primary steelmaking capabilities and primary production technologies with a commissioned independent review, currently being carried out by the not-for-profit Material Processing Institute, based in Teesside.
The Steel Strategy will also explore what can be done to protect the steel sector from unfair trading practices abroad and look at how it can attract and retain skilled talent in the UK. It will leverage the UK’s world-leading research and development capabilities to support the industry, aligning closely with the Government’s Trade Strategy, Strategic Defence Review and its upcoming Industrial Strategy.
The Government will work closely with the Steel Council towards the launch of the Steel Strategy in Spring, and the Council will continue to meet regularly following its publication to help drive investment into steelmaking communities across the country.
Gareth Stace, Director-General of UK Steel, commented: “Developing the Steel Strategy must be a collaborative process, and the consultation is an open invitation for all stakeholders to help shape the future of UK steel.
“The Government’s commitment to our steel sector is both vital and welcome. A robust, bold, and ambitious Steel Strategy has the power to reverse the sector’s decline, particularly as we face increasing competition from imports benefiting from more favourable business conditions. By setting out a clear business plan and roadmap for investment, the Government can secure a brighter future for our industry, safeguard jobs, and support steelworkers and their families.”
Make UK's Aluminium Production and Processing Group has warned that the UK aluminium industry faces critical threat from US trade tariffs.
Roger Ablett, Chairman of the Make UK Aluminium Production and Processing Group, said: “The recent direct threat to UK production and processing of aluminium has come at a moment that industry and investors can ill afford.
“UK producers and processors are already tackling the negative consequences of Russian aluminium being dumped on the European and UK markets through 3rd countries. A failure to reverse the announcement which has come overnight from Washington could have catastrophic long-term investment consequences for UK production and processing viability.
“It is of paramount importance that the UK government seeks to engage with the US administration in a bid to ensure that our domestic market is protected. While it is relatively small in terms of US imports, it is critical to maintaining this key strategic sector in the UK.”
According to the ONS aluminium production and processing is valued at £250mn GVA, employing over 4,000 skilled workers across the country and is considered to be an increasingly critical asset to the UK economy, as wider industrial users seek to decarbonise their processes.
