While British Steel was celebrating the announcement of a major new contract to supply rail for Turkey’s Ankara–İzmir high-speed railway, the government was continuing its search for a long-term answer to the plant’s financial difficulties. The eight-figure deal with ERG International Group is genuinely welcome — but it does not resolve the fundamental question of what British Steel’s future looks like.
The contract covers 36,000 tonnes of rail for the 599km line connecting Ankara with the Aegean coast, reducing travel times and cutting carbon emissions. Supported by UK Export Finance, it has created 23 new jobs and restarted 24-hour production at Scunthorpe for the first time in over a decade. UK Steel praised it as “essential to underpinning a sustainable turnaround.”
But the government, which assumed emergency control of British Steel after Jingye Group attempted to close the plant, has been grappling with losses that now stand at £1.2 million per day. The cumulative bill since the takeover — disclosed to parliament — is £359 million. These are significant sums that require a long-term plan, not just a series of export contracts.
Industry figures have been clear about what that plan must include: a new permanent owner with the commitment and resources to invest in the plant; structural improvements to address energy cost disadvantages; and stronger import protections to prevent cheap overseas steel from undermining British producers. The government has not yet announced how it intends to address each of these.
The Turkish deal is a positive development and a demonstration of British Steel’s commercial viability. But it also underscores the urgency of finding a comprehensive answer to the plant’s situation — before the cost to the public purse, and the uncertainty for 3,500 workers, becomes unsustainable.