British Steel has begun pumping tens of millions of pounds into plants in a boost for the industry.
The firm is spending £48million on a new production system at its Scunthorpe site, while its Scunthorpe Rod Mill plant is undergoing a £32m upgrade.
The company’s chief executive Xifeng Han said: “This is an incredibly exciting time for our business with unprecedented levels of investment – fuelled by the drive of our employees – powering us towards a sustainable future.
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“While we’re still in the early stages of our transformation, these projects are a major step forward for British Steel and our customers.
“The new technology and manufacturing capabilities will significantly enhance our product range and deliver improved operational performance and efficiencies.
"The new technology and manufacturing capabilities will significantly enhance our product range and deliver improved operational performance and efficiencies.
“Steel is vital to modern economies and investments like these will ensure we keep delivering the steel our customers and the world need while playing a central role in transitioning to a low-carbon, circular economy.”
The announcement that work is underway comes as the sector faces growing pressure to switch to more environmentally-friendly methods of production.
The steel sector is blamed for 14% of the UK’s industrial emissions and 2.7% of all Britain’s greenhouse gases.
At the same time, producers are urging customers and the Government to buy more UK steel to boost the British economy and cut Britain's reliance on foreign imports.
Hailing British Steel’s announcement, Community steelworkers’ union national officer Alun Davies said: “These major investments are fantastic news for the workforce, Scunthorpe and British Steel.
“A strong and green steel industry is crucial to Britain’s economic security, and for supporting tens of thousands of jobs and steel communities across the UK.
“It’s great to see British Steel investing - now government must play its part through delivering competitive energy prices and a fair trading environment.”
The Mirror has been campaigning to Save Our Steel since 2015 when the industry was hammered by closures and thousands of job losses.
The sector directly employs 33,700 workers and supports another 42,000 posts in supply chains.
It is worth £2.1billion to the UK economy.
