A £48 million investment from British Steel in a new billet caster at its Scunthorpe headquarters comes with stronger environmental credentials.
Part of the spend covers a new water treatment plant at the works, with the casting of billets - the semi finished steel - using water as significant stages of the process.
Having unveiled its low carbon roadmap last year, pledging to achieve Net Zero status through the biggest transformation ever seen, it is an investment in more efficient processes as the company looks into a range of innovative technologies to reduce its carbon intensity.
Read more: £80m investment in British Steel gets under way in Scunthorpe
Fuel-switching to hydrogen from natural gas is also being explored.
Allan Bell, British Steel’s chief commercial and procurement officer, said: “The casting process uses water to cool the products in a carefully controlled fashion to deliver the required product properties. We also use water to cool our equipment during the casting process. This water is captured and then treated so we can reuse it in the site’s processes. “Our new water treatment plant will enable us to do this in a much more efficient manner, meaning we’ll use less water and less energy.
“Exploring and adopting new technology is driving us towards a clean, green and sustainable future.
“Delivering our transformation requires a great deal of hard work but we’re committed to continuing to improve our manufacturing operations, energy efficiency and environmental performance.”
As reported, upgrades to the Scunthorpe Rod Mill form the balance of the £80 million investment. It was a project brought forward under the previous Greybull ownership, but paused in 2018 as debts mounted up, leading to the business being placed into compulsory liquidation the following May.
Jingye Group pounced for the industrial giant in November, completing the March 2020.
The rod mill investment was heralded at the time as putting the specialist works on “the leading edge in Europe,” leapfrogging continental competitors with technical advances.
The largest single spend for a decade had initially been forecast to operate by late 2019.
It is now set for commissioning in 2023, boosting capacity to 700,000 tonnes and widening the product profile for an ever-demanding market.
The automotive industry is a huge client, with the work seen as bringing a host of technical and commercial opportunities to British Steel, with suspension coils and clutch springs highlighted as well as fasteners and cord when it comes to end products.
There has been little advancement since what was originally known as Appleby Number Two Rod Mill opened in 1976. Part of the overhaul will see it extended by more than 50 metres.
Investment has been welcomed by Community, the steelworkers’ union.
Alun Davies, national officer, 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 it’s part through delivering competitive energy prices and a fair trading environment.”
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