At the site of the new electric arc furnace (EAF) and the fume extraction plant, the last of the 1,343 precast concrete piles are being driven as much as 23 metres into the ground to form the foundations. This milestone signals the end of a phase which has seen two rigs knocking in the piles in a carefully-planned grid formation at a rate of up to 40 piles a day.

The lagoon infill project – which we reported on last time – is complete, with a staggering 105,000m3 of aggregate in place. The next stage is the key civil and mechanical engineering work for the material handling system and fume treatment plant.

After a great deal of clearance and environmental work, the ground has been prepared for the National Grid connection. Piling is underway to create the foundations beneath where the new 275,000-volt substation will be placed. You may have seen reports of a potential delay to this part of the project. As with any major scheme, we are continually discussing potential adjustments and re-prioritisations to the commissioning timetable while working closely with National Grid, our construction partners, and the UK Government. 

Meanwhile, the upgrades to two of our key assets are underway:

• Over at the hot strip mill, detailed engineering is now underway for two major components: the crop shear and coil box. We are looking forward to the improved yield, faster speeds and greater operational stability  these upgrades will bring.
• At the pickle line, we are moving forward in developing the new line which will bring world-class flatness and sustainability. Demolition work has been completed, installation partners selected, and new planning software introduced. The area under development was not affected by the fire of 3 June. We are investigating the causes of this and have communicated separately the alternative arrangements we have been able to make including restarting the Llanwern cold mill. We will continue to keep you informed about this.

Less visible than the transformation of Port Talbot is all the manufacturing and fabricating work going on around the world of the equipment for the new EAF, designed and supplied by Tenova, the Italian metals technology specialist.  These include the meltshop equipment and the pipe and cable bridge as well as control room equipment and the furnace itself. We’re getting geared up for the equipment to be shipped to site. It’s all hugely motivating for the teams and we can’t wait to share progress with you in the next newsletter. In the meantime, have a look at this video to see progress and to hear about what to expect in the next twelve months.