Tata Steel may go for early closure of blast furnaces at Port Talbot

Tata Steel considers early closure of blast furnaces at Port Talbot due to impending strike by Unite Union.

Tata Steel Ltd. on Friday said it may go for early closure of blast furnaces at Port Talbot owing to the impending strike by Unite Union.   “Following the announcement by Unite Union to unilaterally call strike action from 8 July, Tata Steel is unfortunately forced to commence legal action to challenge the validity of Unite’s ballot,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.   “In the coming days, if we cannot be certain that we are able to continue to safely and stably operate our assets through the period of strike action, we will not have any choice but to pause or stop heavy-end operations (including both blast furnaces) on the Port Talbot site,” the spokesperson said.

“That is not a decision we would take lightly, and we recognise that it would prove extremely costly and disruptive throughout the supply chain, but the safety of people on or around our sites will always take priority over everything else, the statement added. 

“The company again calls for Unite to withdraw its industrial action and join Community and GMB unions in giving consideration to the company’s proposed Memorandum of Understanding, which puts forward a wide-ranging proposal including generous employee support packages, training, and skills development,” it further said. 

“We understand the impact of our restructuring will have on many employees and contractors, but we remain committed to a just transition and—pending a government-backed grant funding agreement—to the £1.25 billion investment in low-CO2steelmaking, which will ensure Tata Steel has a long and sustainable future in the UK,” Tata Steel said.