Tata Group Chairman N. Chandrasekaran marks groundbreaking of new Electric Arc Furnace at Port Talbot

Mumbai, July 14, 2025

Mumbai, July 14, 2025: Tata Steel UK today celebrates a historic milestone in its green transformation journey as Mr Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Steel and the Tata Group, joins government ministers at a groundbreaking event for the company’s state-of-the-art Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) facility in Port Talbot.

Mr Chandrasekaran will be joined by Tata Steel CEO and Managing Director T. V. Narendran and Tata Steel UK CEO Rajesh Nair, where they will officially break the ground with spades, marking the official start of construction for the UK’s largest low-carbon steelmaking facility. This is part of a £1.25 billion transformation to low CO₂ steelmaking, supported by a £500 million investment from the UK Government.

The new EAF—set to be commissioned at the end of 2027—is expected to reduce Port Talbot’s carbon emissions by approximately 90%, equivalent to 5 million tonnes of CO₂ per year, while securing high-quality sustainable steel production and supporting 5,000 UK jobs directly.

Speaking ahead of the ceremony, Mr Chandrasekaran said: “This is an important day for Tata Group, Tata Steel and for the UK. Today’s groundbreaking marks not just the beginning of a new Electric Arc Furnace, but a new era for sustainable manufacturing in Britain. At Port Talbot, we are building the foundations of a cleaner, greener future, supporting jobs, driving innovation, and demonstrating our commitment to responsible industry leadership. This project is also part of Tata Group’s wider investment in the UK, across steel, automotive, and technology among others, which reflects our deep and enduring partnership with this country.”

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said:
“This is our Industrial Strategy in action and is great news for Welsh steelmaking backing this crucial Welsh industry, which will give certainty to local communities and thousands of local jobs for years to come.

“This government is committed to a bright future for our steel industry, which is why we provided £500 million of funding to make this project possible. Our modern Industrial Strategy will set out how we’ll back the sector even further to drive growth and create well-paid jobs across the country, as part of our Plan for Change.”

Secretary of State for Wales Jo Stevens said:
“The UK Government acted decisively to ensure that steelmaking in Port Talbot will continue for generations to come, backing Tata Steel with £500 million to secure its future in the town, along with £80 million to support workers and the wider community. Our Steel Strategy will also deliver £2.5 billion of investment to rebuild the UK industry, maintain jobs and drive growth.

“The construction of Tata’s new furnace realises the promise we made to the community, while the development of floating offshore wind, plans for a Celtic Freeport and millions more for local regeneration all mean that Port Talbot has a bright future.”

First Minister Eluned Morgan said:
“This is a momentous day for heavy industry in Wales, as the electric arc furnace has secured the long-term future of steel making at Port Talbot. Seeing spades in the ground today provides a tangible sign of Tata’s intention to continue producing steel in the area, an industry which has provided quality jobs to local people for generations.

“The start of the construction phase is good news for Port Talbot and neighbouring communities, and I’m especially pleased that Tata has committed to employing local contractors and local workers where it can.”

The Port Talbot EAF will be one of the largest in the world, melting UK-sourced scrap steel to produce 3 million tonnes of steel per year. As part of Tata Steel UK’s broader decarbonisation strategy, the project also includes new ladle metallurgy facilities, infrastructure upgrades, and partnerships with leading technology providers such as Tenova, ABB, and Clecim.

Construction is being led by main contractor Sir Robert McAlpine, alongside a strong regional supply chain that includes Darlow Lloyd & Sons, Mii, Skelton Thomas, Wernick Buildings, Andrew Scott Ltd and Systems Group.

The groundbreaking reaffirms Tata Steel’s commitment to delivering long-term sustainability, strengthening UK industrial resilience, and ensuring Wales remains at the forefront of green steelmaking.

Notes

The groundbreaking event is to be live-streamed on Tata Steel UK’s YouTube channel from around 14:15 GMT (19:45 IST) on Monday, July 14
The joint £1.25 billion investment by Tata Steel and the UK Government in green steelmaking at Port Talbot is the biggest in a generation and will not only secure 5000 jobs across Tata Steel UK, but will also reduce the site’s CO₂ emissions by 50 million tonnes over the next ten years.

Disclaimer

Statements in this press release describing the Company’s performance may be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of applicable securities laws and regulations. Actual results may differ materially from those directly or indirectly expressed, inferred or implied. Important factors that could make a difference to the Company’s operations include, among others, economic conditions affecting demand/ supply and price conditions in the domestic and overseas markets in which the Company operates, changes in or due to the environment, Government regulations, laws, statutes, judicial pronouncements and/ or other incidental factors.

For queries and information

Sarvesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Communications, Tata Steel, sarvesh.kumar@tatasteel.com
Tim Rutter: tim.rutter@tatasteeleurope.com +44 (0)7850 990755
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Press Office: ukpressoffice@tatasteeleurope.com

About Tata Steel UK

The Tata Steel Group has been named one of the most ethical companies in the world, and is among the top producing global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 35 million tonnes.
Tata Steel in the UK has the ambition to produce net-zero steel by 2045 at the latest, and to have reduced 30% of its CO2 emissions by 2030.
In October 2024, Tata Steel ceased ironmaking at its Port Talbot site and temporarily paused steelmaking pending the construction of a 3.2Mtpa Electric Arc Furnace, due to be commissioned late in 2027 / early 2028. For that period, the business will import slab and hot rolled coil to support manufacturing and distribution operations at sites across Wales, England and Northern Ireland as well as Norway, Sweden, France, Germany and UAE. It also benefits from a network of sales offices around the world.
Throughout 2024 Tata Steel UK has been undergoing a restructuring that will reduce the size of its workforce to around 5000 direct employees, supplying high-quality steel products to demanding markets, including construction and infrastructure, automotive, packaging and engineering.
Tata Steel Group is one of the world's most geographically-diversified steel producers, with operations and a commercial presence across the world.
The group recorded a consolidated turnover of around US$26 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2025.

About Tata Steel

Tata Steel group is among the top global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 35 million tonnes per annum.
It is one of the world's most geographically diversified steel producers, with operations and commercial presence across the world.
The group recorded a consolidated turnover of around US$26 billion in the financial year ending March 31, 2025.
A Great Place to Work®-certified organisation, Tata Steel Limited, together with its subsidiaries, associates, and joint ventures, is spread across five continents with an employee base of over 76,000.
Tata Steel has announced its major sustainability objectives including Net Zero by 2045.
The Company has been on a multi-year digital-enabled business transformation journey intending to be the leader in ‘Digital Steel making’. The Company has received the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse recognition for its Jamshedpur, Kalinganagar, and IJmuiden Plants. Tata Steel has also been recognised with the ‘Digital Enterprise of India – Steel’ Award 2024 by Economic Times CIO.
The Company has been recognised with the World Economic Forum’s Global Diversity Equity & Inclusion Lighthouse 2023.
The Company has been a part of the DJSI Emerging Markets Index since 2012 and has been consistently ranked among the top 10 steel companies in the DJSI Corporate Sustainability Assessment since 2016.
Tata Steel’s Jamshedpur Plant is India’s first site to receive ResponsibleSteel^TM Certification. Subsequently, its Kalinganagar and Meramandali plants have also received the certification. In India, Tata Steel now has more than 90% of its steel production from ResponsibleSteel^TM certified sites.
Received Prime Minister’s Trophy for the best performing integrated steel plant for 2016-17, 2025 Steel Sustainability Champion recognition from worldsteel for eight years in a row, 2023 Climate Change Leadership Award by CDP, Top performer in Iron and Steel sector in Dun & Bradstreet's India's top 500 companies 2022, Ranked as the 2024 most valuable Mining and Metals brand in India by Brand Finance, ‘Most Ethical Company’ award 2021 from Ethisphere Institute, and ‘Best Corporate for Promotion of Sports’ recognition at the Sportstar Aces Awards 2024.
Received the 2023 Global ERM (Enterprise Risk Management) Award of Distinction at the RIMS ERM Conference 2023, ‘Masters of Risk – Risk Technology’ recognition at The India Risk Management Awards, and ICSI Business Responsibility and Sustainability Award 2023 for its first Business Responsibility and Sustainability Report (BRSR), Excellence in Financial Reporting FY20 from ICAI, among several others.

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