Steel News 2025

31 October 2025: The UK Government has confirmed that it will increase the Network Charging Compensation (NCC) discount from 60% to 90% from April 2026. While the uplift in compensation is greatly welcomed, the steel industry must wait until 2027 to benefit from £14.5m in power price savings, when the compensation is paid out a year in arrears for 2026.

07 October 2025: The EU Commission proposes new import quotas, which will severely curtail UK steelmakers access to their biggest export market. This could have a devastating impact on the industry.

15 September 2025: UK Steel's new industrial electricity price data revealing that Britain’s steelmakers still face significantly higher power costs than their European competitors despite Government moves to tackle the problem, which undermines competitiveness and investment. New data shows that in 2025/26 UK steel producers will pay up to 25% more for electricity than in France and Germany, resulting in an additional £26 million in costs per year.

9 September 2025: The Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) publication has signalled a decisive shift in Government procurement policy to recognise the strategic importance of the UK’s steel industry in delivering national defence and security.

21 August 2025: Liberty Speciality Steel will enter administration following a winding down petition in the high court. Liberty Speciality Steel is now placed under the control of special managers appointed by the government’s official receiver.

10 July 2025: UK Steel welcomes the Government’s decision to rule out proposals for zonal electricity pricing within the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA), after Secretary of State Ed Miliband recognised the need to protect the security and competitiveness of the UK steel sector.

30 June 2025: UK Steel’s recommendations to strengthen existing steel safeguard measures have been taken forward today after the Secretary of State stepped in at a critical time for industry – crucially, it has been confirmed the changes will take effect on 1 July.

26 June 2025: UK Steel, the trade association representing Britain’s steel producers, launched its Digital Steel Catalogue today. It is at the heart of the Government’s revised procurement guidance for steel (launched today), which includes a formal requirement for steel buyers to consult the Catalogue during purchasing decisions, as well as a requirement to consider national security considerations.

25 June 2025: UK Steel is delighted to see the Government has used the publication of its Trade Strategy to arm itself with the weapons it needs to defend industries such as steel. The Government has listened closely to UK Steel and our message that policymakers have to utilise robust trade defence to counter global overcapacity and the flood of subsidised steel entering our market.

25 June 2025: The Department for Business and Trade has today opened a call for evidence from steel companies as it starts the process of designing a replacement mechanism for steel safeguards which are scheduled to expire in June 2026.

24 June 2025: UK Steel’s recommendations to strengthen existing steel safeguard measures have been taken forward today after the Secretary of State stepped in at a critical time for industry.

23 June 2025: The uplift to Network Charging Compensation from 60% to 90% in line with what is provided in Germany will reduce industrial electricity prices by £6.5 per megawatt hour (MWh) for the steel industry – an incredible £14.5 million per year. Despite this impactful cut to electricity costs, there remains a £10-16 per MWh difference between European electricity costs, which slaps £36 million per year on steel bills.