{"id":87376,"date":"2024-07-04T08:09:40","date_gmt":"2024-07-04T08:09:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/04\/port-talbot-first-of-two-blast-furnaces-shuts-down\/"},"modified":"2024-07-04T08:09:40","modified_gmt":"2024-07-04T08:09:40","slug":"port-talbot-first-of-two-blast-furnaces-shuts-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/04\/port-talbot-first-of-two-blast-furnaces-shuts-down\/","title":{"rendered":"Port Talbot: First of two blast furnaces shuts down"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Port<\/div>


\n<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

\n

By\u00a0Huw Thomas,\u00a0<\/span>Business Correspondent, Huw Thomas<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"ConstructionConstruction Photography\/Avalon<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The last molten iron will be tapped from Blast Furnace 5 this week<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Loud noises and large plumes of steam will be visible above the Port Talbot steelworks as one of its historic furnaces is closed down by Friday.<\/p>\n

Blast Furnace 5 (BF5) had been operating since 1959, but will shut as part of Tata Steel UK\u2019s restructure.<\/p>\n

Port Talbot\u2019s other furnace will end production of liquid iron in September ahead of the construction of a greener electric arc furnace next year.<\/p>\n

Nearby residents have been warned about the sights and sounds connected to the cooling of BF5.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"TataTata Steel UK<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The furnace had undergone major rebuilding and renovation works to keep operating<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n
\n
\"TataTata Steel UK<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Blast Furnace 5 in 1958, a year before it began producing liquid iron<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

Earlier this week, engineers began altering the raw ingredients that are poured into the blast furnace in order to prepare for decommissioning.<\/p>\n

Plumes of steam and some whooshing sounds were expected to be heard ahead of the final tapping of liquid iron on Thursday evening or Friday morning.<\/p>\n

When the furnace began life in May 1959, it produced 11,800 tonnes a week, peaking in 2009 when it was producing more than 57,000 tonnes a week.<\/p>\n

Tragedy struck in November 2001 when an explosion killed three steelworkers and severely injured 12 others.<\/p>\n

Tonnes of molten iron burst from the furnace as the explosion lifted the top of the massive structure into the air. <\/p>\n

A report blamed the cause of the disaster on water<\/a> that had come into contact with hot materials in the furnace. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\"FamilyFamily photos<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Stephen Galsworthy, Andrew Hutin and Len Radford died in the 2001 explosion<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
\n

The explosion claimed the lives of Stephen Galsworthy, who was 25, Andrew Hutin, 20, and Len Radford, 53.<\/p>\n

A \u00a365m rebuilding of the furnace, and upgrades since, had allowed it to continue producing the liquid iron required for Port Talbot\u2019s steelworks.<\/p>\n

Its closure comes amid a vast restructure of Tata Steel UK\u2019s operations. <\/p>\n

While BF5 will close this week, Blast Furnace 4 will shut in September and will end Port Talbot\u2019s ability to produce liquid iron from ore. <\/p>\n

Around 2,800 staff from Tata\u2019s 8,000 workforce will lose their jobs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

History of Blast Furnace 5<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
\n