Steel News – Early October 2024
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Steelworkers have drilled the final hole in the last remaining blast furnace in Port Talbot, bringing to an end the traditional method of steelmaking in south Wales. Tata Steel removed the last usable liquid iron from blast furnace 4 – which will eventually be replaced with electric arc furnaces – on Monday afternoon.
The controversial move at the UK’s largest steelworks is part of a restructure that will cut 2,800 jobs.
Tata said it was “deeply conscious” of how difficult the closure was, while Unite called the closure “industrial vandalism”.