Unite the Union has rejected a report by consultancy Syndex, on behalf of trade unions, for potential decarbonisation strategies at Tata Steel's Port Talbot site in south Wales.
On 1 November Tata was going to announce proposals for the decarbonisation of the site, which in the short term included the idling of both blast furnaces, coke ovens, the hot strip mill and the continuous annealing processing line (CAPL). This plan would see Tata importing hot-rolled as substrate to feed its cold-rolled and hot-dip galvanising line, making no liquid iron or steel until the implementation of an electric arc furnace (EAF) in 2027.
The announcement included the loss of 3,000 jobs in a short space of time, as the company looks to pare financial losses of over £1mn/day.
However, the announcement was delayed as Tata Steel agreed to review the plans drawn up by Syndex for other potential decarbonisation pathways. On 17 November union representatives met with the company to discuss the report, which all unions — Community, Unite and GMB — had previously agreed represented the multi-union position.
At the meeting unions said blast furnace number 4 at the site should be maintained up to 2032, alongside the downstream processing units. The Syndex report argues for two smaller EAFs rather than one bigger 3mn t unit, citing issues with scrap supply and energy availability.
It also suggests moving to direct reduced iron production when possible and preserves around 2,000 jobs of the 3,000 Tata was due to eliminate, union representatives said. Syndex also proposed establishing a plate mill at the site to supply wind turbine manufacturers. It accepts the plan to close the coking ovens, one of the more carbon-intensive parts of the ironmaking process.
But Unite's general secretary Sharon Graham on her personal profile on X, the site formally known as Twitter, on 18 November said: "Unite the Union does not accept the need for one single job to be lost. We will not accept the bosses' plan or any plan that leads to job cuts — like the one from Syndex".
Unite has launched its own "workers' plan" for the industry, which proposes legislation meaning all UK infrastructure projects would use UK steel.
Sources close to Tata said the company is open to proposals backed by all union stakeholders, provided they are financially viable.
