TATA STEEL UK said it remains confident in its ability to maintain supply to customers and downstream manufacturers following a fire at its Pickle Line facility in Port Talbot.
The company said it introduced mitigation measures soon after the incident to protect downstream operations and customer commitments. These include increased use of the operational Llanwern Pickle Line, plans to restart the Llanwern Cold Mill, and support from wider Tata Steel Group supply chain arrangements where required.
Tata Steel UK said stock levels within the company and across the wider UK supply chain remain healthy, providing support while the mitigation measures are implemented. The company said it continues to work with customers across sectors including construction, automotive and other UK industries.
Hot Strip Mill operations at Port Talbot have resumed following planned maintenance activity.
Tata Steel UK said the incident does not affect the wider Electric Arc Furnace project and does not change its long-term plans for the transformation of Port Talbot.
Investigations into the cause of the fire are continuing.
Rajesh Nair, CEO of Tata Steel UK, said: “Teams across the business have worked around the clock in recent days to implement mitigation plans and we are making strong progress on contingency arrangements across our UK operations.
“Based on our current assessments, we remain confident in our ability to continue supporting customers and downstream manufacturers during this period and do not currently expect significant market-wide disruption.
“The long-term transformation of Port Talbot remains absolutely central to our future plans and the wider Electric Arc Furnace project continues to progress at pace.”
The company said it continues to work with customers, suppliers, trade unions and the government as operational assessments continue.
