Turkish buyer British Steel plans to increase production at Scunthorpe plant

Oyak, a Turkish military fund that has been selected as the preferred bidder for the purchase of British Steel's distressed assets, has announced that it is seeking to improve productivity in its mills, which in turn could result in the loss of several hundred jobs. According to the company, the immediate goal will be to increase the mill's production.

Toker Ozkan, head of Oyak Mining Metallurgy Group, noted that productivity at the company's Scunthorpe plant was significantly lower than that of other European steelmakers. As part of his efforts to increase production, he intends to increase the primary steel production at the plant to 3 million tons per year. The modernization of the plant is expected to increase production to 3.2 million tons per year, he said. It should be noted that the plant produced 2.8 million tonnes of primary steel in 2018.

The Turkish company has also asked British taxpayers to invest in a refurbishment of a hydrogen plant to reduce carbon emissions. The company intends to transfer at least 50% of its capacity to work on gas. Later, in cooperation with the UK government, it intends to switch from gas to hydrogen. The Hydrogen Initiative, which requires significant investment, has yet to be commercialized.

Meanwhile, Turkish rescuer British Steel plans to move Chemson, its chemical plant, from Tyneside to Europe. The decision will result in the loss of jobs for 64 people.