Liberty Steel Accomplishes Key Milestone; Announces Restart of Mothballed U.K. Mill Furnace

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The Liberty Steel Division under the U.K.-based Liberty House Group has announced official restart of the idled second furnace at its Rotherham steelworks in northern England. The furnace, mothballed by Tata Steel-its previous owner, was lit again by the Prince of Wales. The re-ignition of the giant N-Furnace is considered as a major milestone in the revival of Britain’s steel industry.

Speaking on the occasion, Sanjeev Gupta, Executive Chairman, Liberty House noted that the restart of the furnace, after lying idle for more than two years, is a pivotal moment in the revival of UK steelmaking. The company is immensely pleased with the presence of His Royal Highness during the milestone event. The event itself proclaims the bright future of Britain’s steel industry, Gupta noted. It is a very good news for the entire manufacturing and engineering sector, he added.

Tata Steel had mothballed both the electric arc furnaces at the Rotherham mill when steel crisis had hit its peak in 2015. While acquiring the steel mill from Tata Steel, Liberty had pledged to restart the furnaces. Accordingly, the company had invested approximately $28 million in expansion works at the facility. The first furnace had already been restarted. The restart of the second furnace follows nearly five months of engineering work by a dedicated team.

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According to sources, the upgrades have helped Liberty Steel to triple its scrap melting capacity in Rotherham. Now, the company has emerged as the largest steel recycler in the UK, capable to recycle more than 1.2 million metric tons of steel per year. The re-ignition will also help the company move one step closer in achieving the target to install 5 million metric tons of GreenSteel production capacity within five years. Further, it will also enable the plant to double production on its adjacent bar mill.