LONDON (AP) – China has warned the UK government to treat Chinese British steel owners fairly or potentially undermine investor confidence in the country two days after British authorities control the company.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry commented on Monday when government-appointed managers competed to prevent British Steel from closing the last two blast furnaces in Britain that made so-called Virgin Steel from raw materials.
Parliament passed legislation on Saturday that authorized the government to control the company and its Scunthorpe Steelworks from Jingye Group, which has owned British steel since 2020. Jingye still owns the company, but British authorities have controlled the day-to-day operations.
“We hope the British government treatments Chinese enterprises investing and operating in the UK fairly and justly, protects their legitimate rights and interests, and avoids politicizing and over-securitizing economic and trade cooperation, so as not to affect the confidence of Chinese enterprises in investing and cooperating in the UK,” Foreign Ministry spokeperson Lin Jian said during the weekly press conference in Beijing.
British Steel said in a statement that the British government installed a new executive team on British Steel on Monday to ensure “consistent and professional leadership” of Scunthorpe Works in the northeast of the UK.
Two long-time British steel executives Allan Bell and Lisa Coulson have been appointed as the company's interim CEO and chief business officer. The appointment was approved by Commerce Secretary Jonathan Reynolds.
Bell, who has worked at Scunthorpe for 14 years, said his main goal is to ensure that steel production at the plant continues.
“Our direct priority is to ensure that we need to continue the raw materials needed for explosive furnace operations to ensure that we have dedicated personnel to run these furnaces and maintain the highest level of health and safety for our workforce,” Bell said in a statement.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer took dramatic steps on Saturday to recall the spring recession parliament and pass a hurry to wait for legislation to authorize the government to control British steel. Authorities are concerned about the future of the plant after Jingye stopped ordering iron ore and coking coal to keep the furnace running.
Once the explosion furnaces are shut down, restarting them is difficult and expensive, raising concerns that Britain may lose the capacity of high-quality virgin steel needed by builders and railways as the government tries to stimulate economic growth. Other British steel manufacturers are already moving to arc furnaces made of steel from scrap metal.
