The UK government has temporarily taken control of British Steel to prevent the imminent closure of its blast furnaces and secure critical raw materials for continued operations at the Scunthorpe plant.
Parliament passed emergency legislation granting the government sweeping powers to manage the company’s operations, staffing, and raw material procurement. The intervention comes amid fears that China’s Jingye Group, which owns British Steel, was preparing to shut down primary steelmaking, threatening thousands of jobs.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds criticized Jingye for making excessive demands and accused the company of planning an abrupt closure without government support. He warned that without intervention, British Steel would have ceased blast furnace operations unilaterally. While ownership has not been transferred, Reynolds acknowledged that nationalization could be considered in the future.
British Steel employs around 3,500 workers at Scunthorpe, home to the UK’s last blast furnaces. The company’s future has been uncertain after failing to secure a funding deal with the government for a transition to greener steelmaking. Jingye had reportedly halted raw material orders and begun selling off supplies, raising alarms of an impending shutdown.
Jingye claims the Scunthorpe plant is losing GBP 700,000 (USD 915,565) a day due to poor market conditions and rising environmental costs. In response, the government is working to restore material supplies, with two cargo ships already docked at Immingham port and a third enroute from Africa.
To stabilize leadership, British Steel has appointed Allan Bell as interim CEO and Lisa Coulson as interim CCO, with appointments approved by the Secretary of State.
1 USD / 0.76 GBP