If you are investment planning in Cheshire, the Government has fast tracked its plans to support British steel with a £2.5 billion investment.
The news comes on the back of President Trump’s threat to hike up tariffs on imports of steel and aluminium to the US. The Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said his Green Paper was part of the Government’s commitment to the industry and long predated the recent transatlantic trade tension.
In their 2024 election manifesto, Labour declared their support for rebuilding the UK steel industry and announced a separate £500 million deal to help Tata Steel with production at their Welsh operation at Port Talbot. The Government is keen to back innovative private sector-led projects and to ensure that the British steel industry is a primary supplier in the UK’s main infrastructure projects. It sees these as vital drivers in its push for economic growth.
There was additional welcome news last week with the announcement that Heathrow Airport has pledged to use UK steel in its biggest-ever investment programme, as it awaits the green light for a third runway. It plans to use British steel in its overhaul capacity at Terminal 2 and Terminal 5.
The Government’s Green Paper is also considering a range of longer-term issues of interest to the industry, which include increasing energy costs, international economic instability and protectionism, and the opportunities presented by scrap metal recycling.
Its objective is to protect employment and UK living standards in steel-producing communities. Part of this investment is going towards meeting green objectives, such as supporting electric arc furnaces, which can heat steel without burning fossil fuels.
