Tata Steel UK to sell speciality steel unit for £100 mn to Liberty House

Tata Steel UK has signed an agreement to sell its speciality steel unit to Liberty House Group for £100 million.

In a notification to the stock exchanges, Tata Steel said the agreement covered several South Yorkshire-based assets. These included electric arc steelworks and a bar mill at Rotherham, a steel purifying facility in Stockbridge and a mill in Brinsworth, along with service centres in several parts of the world, including China. The unit employs 1700 people and caters to the aerospace, automotive and oil & gas industries.

“We will be handing over a business which has been transformed, following difficult decisions, to restructure and refocus on higher-value markets. Employees, trade unions and management teams have worked hard at the speciality unit to improve performance,” Bimlendra Jha, chief executive officer at Tata Steel UK was quoted.

Tata Steel UK is currently consulting with its employees on a number of proposals on the way ahead for a more sustainable future. It is also in discussion with the British Steel Pension Scheme trustees and the pensions regulator.

Tata Steel said it had so far invested £1.5 billion in its UK business, including £85 million this year, on a range of sustenance and improvement schemes.

The company's strip products business will continue to employ 9,000 people in the UK, manufacturing advanced products for sectors such as the automotive industry, it said.