British Steel Secures Planning Permission for Electric Arc Furnace at Teesside Plant
British Steel has been granted planning permission to build a state-of-the-art Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) at its Teesside site — a key milestone in its £1.25 billion decarbonisation plan. The application was approved by Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council following a detailed consultation period.
British Steel’s application to build another EAF at its Scunthorpe site is expected to be decided imminently by North Lincolnshire Council.
The proposed transformation — British Steel’s largest in over a century — is subject to securing appropriate support from the UK Government.
Xijun Cao, President and CEO of British Steel, said:
“We’re delighted to have received planning permission to build an Electric Arc Furnace at our Teesside site, and thank everyone who has supported our proposals to bring steelmaking back to the region.The proposed installation of EAFs in Scunthorpe and Teesside is central to our journey to a green future as they would help us reduce emissions of CO2 by more than 75 per cent. However, it is crucial we now secure the backing of the UK Government.
Our owner, Jingye, is committed to the unprecedented investment decarbonisation requires. Our desire to dramatically reduce our carbon footprint, coupled with challenging market conditions, means it is imperative swift and decisive action is taken to ensure a sustainable future for British Steel.
We started talks with the UK Government in 2022 about the timely support we require on our journey to net zero, including the need for the British government to adopt the correct policies and frameworks now to back our drive to become a clean, green, and successful company. We are committed to working with the UK Government and need to reach an agreement quickly so we can achieve our ambitious goals, secure thousands of jobs, and keep making the steel Britain needs for generations to come.”
Preparing for a Green Steel Future
Significant preparation works are already underway, including environmental and technical studies and equipment selection, to ensure British Steel’s ambitious plans can be delivered as quickly as possible.
Both proposed EAFs would replace the aging iron and steelmaking operations at British Steel’s Scunthorpe site, which are responsible for the vast majority of the company’s CO2 emissions. Current operations would be maintained until the full transition to electric arc steelmaking is complete.
British Steel has also begun preliminary talks with trade unions regarding the electrification process and has pledged to support employees affected by the decarbonisation transition.
Xijun Cao added:
“We are confident our proposals will help secure the low-embedded carbon steelmaking the UK requires now and for decades to come.”
Supporting Technical Studies on EAF Technology
Detailed studies show that electrification would allow British Steel to continue producing the full range of steel products its customers need. A special paper by UK Steel explains how EAF technology can deliver all steel products and grades through careful management of the raw material mix.
Read more about this study here.
