Tata Steel decides to mothball Welsh plant

Tata Steel has decided to mothball one of its plants in Wales, in a move aimed at reducing costs and focussing on manufacturing higher-value products.

This move by the Indian steel behemoth is likely to result in nearly 200 job losses, according to reports. “Some coil processing facilities including the sibling hot strip mill at Llanwern, Newport, will come out of production, but will be retained so they can be restarted in more favourable market conditions,” Tata Steel said.

Employees at the Llanwern mill will be redeployed within the business and the company will discuss possible impacts with contracting companies which provide services.

“In the past year, we have also been making positive improvements to our manufacturing capability and in developing higher-value new steel products for customers. But surging, and often unfairly traded, imports have combined with a strong pound to create a very challenging business environment. The changes we have told employees about, will reduce our costs and enable us to focus on generating more value from our products, which will improve our competitiveness,” Strip Products UK director Stuart Wilkie said. Tata Steel has invested upwards of £350 million in Wales in the past five years.