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| Port Talbot MP says lower Tata losses improve chance of deal | Port Talbot MP says lower Tata losses improve chance of deal |
| (5 months later) | |
| Losses at Tata Steel have halved from the previously reported £1m a day, giving weight to management’s claims that it can turn the business around, the Labour MP Stephen Kinnock said. | Losses at Tata Steel have halved from the previously reported £1m a day, giving weight to management’s claims that it can turn the business around, the Labour MP Stephen Kinnock said. |
| Kinnock, whose Aberavon constituency is home to Tata’s Port Talbot plant, said the government should not rush into backing the wrong deal for the business, which Tata put up for sale last week. | Kinnock, whose Aberavon constituency is home to Tata’s Port Talbot plant, said the government should not rush into backing the wrong deal for the business, which Tata put up for sale last week. |
| He welcomed the interest of metals magnate Sanjeev Gupta in a possible rescue plan but was doubtful about Gupta’s proposal to replace Port Talbot’s giant steelmaking blast furnace with an operation built around recycling scrap steel. | He welcomed the interest of metals magnate Sanjeev Gupta in a possible rescue plan but was doubtful about Gupta’s proposal to replace Port Talbot’s giant steelmaking blast furnace with an operation built around recycling scrap steel. |
| Kinnock has been a fierce critic of the government’s handling of the crisis at Tata Steel, which employs 15,000 people including about 4,000 at the Port Talbot plant in south Wales. | Kinnock has been a fierce critic of the government’s handling of the crisis at Tata Steel, which employs 15,000 people including about 4,000 at the Port Talbot plant in south Wales. |
| The business secretary, Sajid Javid, arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday to meet Tata’s bosses a week after Kinnock travelled to the city to lobby the Indian conglomerate when Javid was on a trip to Australia. Javid is now trying to help broker a purchase of the business, possibly with government support for the buyer. | The business secretary, Sajid Javid, arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday to meet Tata’s bosses a week after Kinnock travelled to the city to lobby the Indian conglomerate when Javid was on a trip to Australia. Javid is now trying to help broker a purchase of the business, possibly with government support for the buyer. |
| Speaking on the BBC’s Today programme, Kinnock said: “It’s very good that Sajid Javid has finally found his way to Mumbai. The proposals Mr Gupta has outlined are very interesting indeed. I’m going to be meeting with him very soon … But there are quite interesting ideas bubbling under and we need to make sure we don’t rush to something because the government is in such a shambles.” | Speaking on the BBC’s Today programme, Kinnock said: “It’s very good that Sajid Javid has finally found his way to Mumbai. The proposals Mr Gupta has outlined are very interesting indeed. I’m going to be meeting with him very soon … But there are quite interesting ideas bubbling under and we need to make sure we don’t rush to something because the government is in such a shambles.” |
| Tata has indicated it will give the government weeks and not months to find a buyer for its troubled UK business, which was said to be losing £1m a day. But Kinnock said, after talks with unions on Tuesday, he believed that figure overestimated Tata Steel’s plight. | Tata has indicated it will give the government weeks and not months to find a buyer for its troubled UK business, which was said to be losing £1m a day. But Kinnock said, after talks with unions on Tuesday, he believed that figure overestimated Tata Steel’s plight. |
| “We need to start challenging that figure. It was something that emerged in the autumn. [The loss] has gone down by at least 50% from what it was and is moving in the right direction. It’s a big challenge – no one is denying that – but there are opportunities for a fresh start.” | “We need to start challenging that figure. It was something that emerged in the autumn. [The loss] has gone down by at least 50% from what it was and is moving in the right direction. It’s a big challenge – no one is denying that – but there are opportunities for a fresh start.” |
| He said a management plan rejected by Tata last week had emerged as a serious contender if the government came up with support measures. | He said a management plan rejected by Tata last week had emerged as a serious contender if the government came up with support measures. |
| Kinnock did not say what had caused Tata Steel’s losses to come down. Tata has cut jobs at Port Talbot and other plants, and management has been implementing other efficiency measures as part of a turnaround plan. The pound’s sharp fall may also have helped support export sales. | Kinnock did not say what had caused Tata Steel’s losses to come down. Tata has cut jobs at Port Talbot and other plants, and management has been implementing other efficiency measures as part of a turnaround plan. The pound’s sharp fall may also have helped support export sales. |
| He was doubtful about Gupta’s proposal to scrap Port Talbot’s blast furnace in favour of arc furnaces to recycle scrap steel. He said the blast furnace was technologically advanced and its energy could be reused for other purposes. | He was doubtful about Gupta’s proposal to scrap Port Talbot’s blast furnace in favour of arc furnaces to recycle scrap steel. He said the blast furnace was technologically advanced and its energy could be reused for other purposes. |
| Without the blast furnace, production would be cut drastically and jobs would be threatened despite Gupta’s assurance that he would seek to keep on all workers at Port Talbot. | Without the blast furnace, production would be cut drastically and jobs would be threatened despite Gupta’s assurance that he would seek to keep on all workers at Port Talbot. |