Proprietor of Port Talbot steelworks provides talks to maintain final blast furnace open

The proprietor of the Port Talbot steelworks has written to commerce unions providing contemporary talks amid a battle to delay plans that might see 2,800 jobs misplaced and manufacturing suspended at a web site that has been in operation since 1951.

The Guardian understands {that a} letter despatched on Sunday afternoon by Rajesh Nair, the UK boss of Tata Metal, has provided a brand new spherical of discussions about future investments on the firm’s crops within the UK, together with Port Talbot.

Nonetheless, sources have mentioned the supply to the Nationwide Commerce Union Metal Coordinating Committee, which represents all three unions on the web site in south Wales, is based on unions agreeing to droop any future industrial motion.

Tata had initially deliberate to shut the second of its two remaining blast furnaces on the finish of September, whereas the method of shutting down the primary is because of start in the course of this week. Different components that can shut embody the harbour, sinter plant, ore yards and first steelmaking, bringing to a halt greater than 70 years of steelmaking in Port Talbot.

The plans have been introduced ahead after the Unite union introduced indefinite strike action starting on 8 July. Tata mentioned it couldn’t “safely and stably” function the plant throughout any strike, and it has introduced ahead full closure of the second furnace to as early as subsequent Sunday, 7 July.

The brand new electrical furnace shouldn’t be as a consequence of come onstream till 2027 and unions need steelmaking to proceed till then. Unite warned over the weekend that any closure can be “irreversible” and urged Tata to not “abandon” the employees employed on the plant.

It mentioned: “We once more name on the corporate to attend till we’ve got a change of presidency, not make any irreversible choices, and enter into significant negotiations.”

The shadow enterprise secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, was reportedly in talks with the unions and Tata final week in an effort to avert the early closure.

The primary minister of Wales, Vaughan Gething, and the Welsh economic system secretary, Jeremy Miles, mentioned: “The information that Tata may swap off blast furnaces 4 and 5 at Port Talbot subsequent week is extraordinary and can trigger enormous anxiousness for the workforce, their households and the neighborhood.

“The Welsh authorities can’t and won’t help the closure of each blast furnaces.”

Earlier this 12 months, Tata struck a controversial cope with the UK authorities, securing a £500m grant to construct a greener £1.25bn electrical arc furnace. Nonetheless, the corporate needs to mothball Port Talbot throughout building, leaving 1000’s of native individuals with out work in a city the place Tata is the principle employer.

The Labour celebration, broadly anticipated to win a majority in Thursday’s basic election, has beforehand promised to invest £3bn in the UK’s steel industry within the subsequent parliament, if elected. This would come with the £500m already pledged to Port Talbot.

Final month Unite introduced that its 1,500 Tata members would begin “all-out indefinite strike motion” from 8 July, vowing to proceed the strikes till Tata stopped its “disastrous” plan.

The Neighborhood and GMB unions, which additionally characterize employees at Port Talbot, have mentioned they may wait till after the election earlier than deciding whether or not to strike.

Unite insisted on Saturday it could preserve sufficient employees on web site throughout the strike to make sure all security procedures can be met, which might make sure the furnaces may operate till September.

Tata has additionally now launched a authorized problem in opposition to Unite to attempt to avert its deliberate strike motion, with a call on whether or not it has been profitable anticipated on Wednesday.

If profitable, Tata may revert to its plan of closing the second furnace in September.

Unite has hit again on the authorized motion, saying: “As an alternative of ready for a possible change of presidency, Tata has determined to double down, making continued threats and hiring Metropolis attorneys to attempt to cease industrial motion on trumped-up technicalities. If they’re profitable, Unite will reballot. We can’t enable these metal jobs to go.”

Tata has beforehand mentioned it’s shedding about £1m every day holding the remaining furnaces open.

A Tata spokesperson mentioned: “Within the coming days, if we can’t be sure that we’re in a position to proceed to securely and stably function our property via the interval of strike motion, we is not going to have any selection however to pause or cease heavy finish operations (together with each blast furnaces) on the Port Talbot web site.

“That isn’t a call we’d take flippantly, and we recognise that it could show extraordinarily expensive and disruptive all through the availability chain, however the security of individuals on or round our websites will at all times take precedence over every thing else.”