Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has officially re-opened Britain's largest steel mill in Lanarkshire today, 28 September.

The iconic Dalzell works at Motherwell was closed by Tata in December last year, resulting in 225 jobs being lost.

The facility, which was purchased by Liberty House in April, has over the years produced steel plate used in the shipbuilding, construction, mining, oil production and heavy vehicle manufacture industries.

Liberty has spent the last five months rebuilding the workforce and recommissioning equipment at the site. Around 120 staff have been recruited, including many former employees who have returned as well as those new to the industry including several apprentices. As production rises in response to market demand, it is estimated employment will increase to over 200 in the next 18 months.

-- Advertisement --

In addition, Liberty stated the site has already secured a "significant number" of orders for plate to be used in the construction and energy sectors.

The First Minister described the plants revival as "a very positive signal that the steel and engineering industries still have a future here in Scotland".

"This is a fantastic day for Dalzell workers, for Motherwell and for Scotland's steel industry," she said.

"Restarting steel production has only been possible thanks to the tremendous team effort of everyone involved in the steel taskforce to find a viable future for this site, meaning workers here in Lanarkshire can once again produce world-class products."

Executive chairman of the Liberty House Group, Sanjeev Gupta, added: "There is an impressive spirit of partnership here and a determination to give the Scottish steel industry a real future. From our side we promised we would get this important plant open again by the autumn and today we are proud to be fulfilling that promise."

Mr Gupta added the nearby Clydebridge works at Cambuslang would also reopen when market conditions allowed.

(LM/MH)