LONDON: Liberty Steel UK, owned by British-Indian businessman Sanjeev Gupta, on Thursday said it has relaunched production at its GreenSteel Rotherham electric arc furnace, with operation at night to maximise efficiency and mitigate high energy costs.
Operations at the plant in Rotherham, northern England, which produces sustainably-produced steel for growth markets such as infrastructure and high-value engineering and is among the UK's most electro-intensive industrial sites.
Therefore, as part of the restart, they are scheduled to run between 11 pm and 6 am when energy costs will be comparatively lower. "Liberty is determined to support the government's drive towards a net zero economy and to make the decarbonisation of the UK steel industry a reality. We are committed to supporting the UK's infrastructure growth plan. As Liberty Steel UK ramps up we're showing our commitment to make South Yorkshire a UK GreenSteel hub," said Subhajit Roy Chowdhury, Liberty Steel UK's Chief Executive Officer.
Near Rotherham, Liberty Steel UK's speciality steel division in Stocksbridge, which produces steel components for demanding aerospace and energy applications, is also restarting focused production campaigns for key customers.
The restart, with which the company plans to reach 50,000 tonnes per month as soon as possible, follows a GBP 50 million funding injection from Liberty Steel's parent company GFG Alliance, part of GFG's restructuring and transformation drive following the collapse of its main lender Greensill Capital.
The company said that the injection sets a stable platform for the full refinancing of Liberty Steel UK operations. The steel firm said it plans to expand the Rotherham plant's long-term capacity, ultimately creating a 2 million tonnes per annum GreenSteel hub with increased employment and new products.
Rotherham will supply Liberty Steel UK's downstream mills at Thrybergh and Scunthorpe, which manufacture products for infrastructure, automotive and other sectors.