UK Steel Wants a Bigger Piece of the Wind Energy Pie
The UK is facing an existential issue that plagues all industrialized nations in our modern, globalized era – namely, the depth the country should lean on protectionist policies. In this case, the UK steel industry risks being left out of one very specific, but crucial, aspect of the green energy revolution.
For the uninitiated, wind power has become a key pillar in the UK’s energy ecosystem. While wind constitutes a mere 10% of America’s energy pool, in the UK, it stands at a colossal 29%!
There’s just one problem – UK’s industry hasn’t been able to get in on the action.
According to consultants Lumen Energy & Environment, a mere 2% of steel used in British offshore wind projects over the last 5 years is made at home. And UK Steel, a lobbying group, is calling for big changes.
Gareth Stace, the UK Steel chief executive, pointed to a “great opportunity” in offshore wind, and along those lines, called on the government to favor domestic steel in current and future wind projects.
The UK’s steel industry has a relatively modest economic impact, with around 1,160 businesses directly supporting 40,000 jobs across the country and producing 5.6 million tons of steel (making it the 8th-largest EU steel producer).
Though for what it’s worth, the UK’s government is set to unveil a new steel strategy in the spring of 2025, aiming to “to ramp up investment, strengthen our supply chains and create more well-paid jobs in the places where they’re most needed”, and it won’t “prioritize short-term subsidies over long-term jobs.”
Whether that translates to more action for the UK steel industry – and thus, keeping more of the nation’s wind energy sector in-house – remains to be seen, but it’s a start.
