Tata Steel refutes any back-tracking on Port Talbot closure despite Labour party seeking renewed talks

The Labour party has called for Tata Steel to make 'no irreversible decisions' till the General Election next month

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26 Aug, 2025 12:21

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Tata Steel has expressed concerns over news reports in the UK media suggesting that the investment and restructuring programme at Port Talbot may be 'put in peril' over differences between Conservative and Labour parties in the ongoing election period.

In a statement to stock exchanges on June 11, Tata Steel clarified that it would continue with its announced closure of assets and restructuring program at the plant in the coming months. "We urge and request the current and the incoming government post-elections, to adhere to and safeguard the agreed terms of the £500 million package of support for the Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) project announced in September 2023", Tata Steel said in the statement.

As of now, one blast furnace at Port Talbot is scheduled to close by the end of June, and another one by the end of September, the company said. The plant plans to continue to service customers by utilising imported, semi-finished steel till the new furnace is built and commissioned.

The Labour party has called for Tata Steel to make 'no irreversible decisions' till the General Election next month, said news reports. The First Minister of Wales and leader of Welsh Labour Vaughan Gething has met the management and trade unions at Port Talbot on June 10 and is making efforts to keep steelmaking going at the plant.

Labour Party's shadow Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has urged Tata Steel to wait till the general election and hold new talks, BBC reported on June 10. Reynolds has promised more government funds than the £500 million which were promised by the Conservatives.

Tata Steel is one of UK’s biggest private investors, and its GBP 1.25 billion investment in Port Talbot is the largest in many decades in British steelmaking.

In April this year, Tata Steel had decided to shut its furnaces at Port Talbot, turning down union's plea to reconsider the plans, stating daily financial loss of GBP 1 million due to the operations. Construction work on a new furnace at Port Talbot is likely to begin next year, one that would employ fewer workers and would adhere to greener production.