Tata begins construction of Port Talbot electric arc furnace

TATA Steel today began construction of its first electric arc furnace (EAF) at the Port Talbot steelworks, marking the launch of its £1.25bn (US$1.7bn) “transformation” to low-carbon steelmaking.

The EAF is expected to produce 3 m t/y of steel from UK-sourced scrap steel and reduce the steelworks’ carbon emissions by 5m t/y.

Though Tata says the new technology will support 5,000 jobs, the construction of the EAF follows the closure of Port Talbot’s blast furnace last year which resulted in the loss of 2,800 jobs.

Natarajan Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Group, said: “This is a proud day for Tata Group, Tata Steel and for the UK. Today’s groundbreaking marks not just the beginning of a new electric arc furnace, but a new era for sustainable manufacturing in Britain.”

Green steelmaking

EAFs convert scrap steel into industry-grade material by using electrical energy to generate intense heat. While oxygen may be injected in certain processes to assist with impurity removal, EAFs primarily rely on electric arcs rather than combustion. They are smaller and more flexible than traditional blast furnaces, which require a continuous supply of coke to process iron ore and run at constant high temperatures.

EAFs are not new in the UK, with Liberty Steel and Sheffield Forgemasters already using the technology to develop speciality steels for the aerospace, nuclear and defence industries.

Investing in scrap

According to UK Steel, the current issue with large-scale EAF development is sourcing a steady supply of scrap metal.

Part of Tata’s £1.25bn investment, which includes £500m from the UK government, will be used to source UK scrap steel, which will make up 75% of the expected scrap used.

Tata has also launched a new £7m research initiative, ADAPT-EAF (Accelerating the Development of Automotive and Packaging steel Technology for Electric Arc Furnace production). The scheme will use an AI-powered platform to identify how different types of steel impact steel quality and processability.

Chandrasekaran added: “At Port Talbot, we are building the foundations of a cleaner, greener future, supporting jobs, driving innovation and demonstrating our commitment to responsible industry leadership.”

The Port Talbot EAF is expected to be commissioned at the end of 2027.