New call to protect UK’s steel blast furnaces

REIDsteel managing director Simon Boyd has called on the government to safeguard blast furnaces at British Steel in any talks about its future.

Simon, who was made OBE in the New Year’s Honours for services to steel manufacturing and SMEs, warned that the UK must possess the capability to make virgin steel from iron ore.

Along with a small group of business leaders in the steel industry, Simon has written to the Secretary of State for Business and leaders of other political parties calling for a meeting to discuss threats to the industry.

His comments come after PM Keir Starmer and Business Secretary Peter Kyle failed to secure an agreement for the future of British Steel on a recent trip to China and amid interest in the company from investor Michael Flacks.

The Manchester-born businessman is preparing a bid for British Steel through his Miami-based Flacks Group and will combine it with the Ilva steelworks in Italy, according to the Financial Times.

Simon said: “Now is not the right time to be looking for private investment.

“British Steel needs to be taken into public ownership, reinvested in and brought up to date before consideration of some level of privatisation involving a British company is considered.

“This must include continued use and eventual replacement of the company’s two blast furnaces along with construction of two new Electric Arc Furnaces (EAF) and carbon capture capability.

“If we lose our blast furnace capability we will be one hundred per cent reliant on imports of foreign virgin steel and foreign EAF steel, with a devastating impact on critical infrastructure, rail and defence sectors.

“While the government dithers, the clock is ticking.”

The first anniversary of the government’s takeover of British Steel in April 2025 is fast approaching.

Blast furnaces at British Steel in Scunthorpe will reach the end of their working life within the next five to 10 years and there is currently no large scale producer of EAF steel in the UK.

The government is running British Steel at a cost to the taxpayer but Chinese firm Jingye remains the legal owner.

Simon added: “The government missed a golden opportunity in China to take British Steel under full public ownership.

“Its dismal failure is symptomatic of the apathy which has left the company, its employees, contractors, supply chain and local community in limbo for nearly a year.”

Simon also hit out at the government for policies which have undermined the steelmaking giant.

Contract specifications for low carbon levels in many UK infrastructure projects mean that British Steel products are often ruled out in favour of EAF steel – such as for the Net Zero Teesside (NZT) gas-powered electricity plant in the North East.

China’s Modern Heavy Industries was given the contract by NZT for part of the steel needed to build the facility because it can supply so called ‘green steel’ produced in electric arc furnaces (EAF) using scrap steel. 

The steel could have been made in British Steel’s own blast furnaces and rolled five minutes down the road from the new development in Teesside.

Simon said: “There are glaring contradictions in government policy.

“On one hand, it has put measures in place to safeguard the future of British Steel at a cost of about £350m a year yet on the other hand its own policies are damaging the company’s ability to win business and survive.

“it is being excluded and denied access to very market upon which it depends. Why spend all of this money if British Steel is not able to sell into the market. The irony is incredible.”



Simon previously campaigned to save British Steel when its blast furnaces came under threat last March.