A BURGEONING steel company will play a pivotal role in the evolution of London’s skyline.

British Steel has agreed a deal with contractor William Hare to provide steel for office buildings in the capital.

Bosses say steel processed at the company’s Teesside Beam Mill, near Redcar, will be used on the 40-storey 100 Bishopsgate development and the 36-storey Scalpel, on London’s Lime Street.

They added Bishopsgate will use 3,500-tonnes of steel, with the Scalpel needing 1,000-tonnes.

The deals mark further success for British Steel, which was founded earlier this year from Tata Steel’s Long Products division and employs hundreds of people across the North-East and York.

They also come just days after The Northern Echo revealed the Beam Mill, which will also roll steel for Scunthorpe United’s new 12,000-seat football stadium, had achieved its best manufacturing quarter for almost a decade and retained an industry benchmark officials say gives it greater chance of securing further projects.

Peter Hogg, British Steel’s commercial director, said its William Hare agreement was a sign of its market standing, adding steel will be made at its Scunthorpe works.

He said: “We’re all proud William Hare selected us to form this type of partnership; it is a great show of confidence in our employees and their capability.

“William Hare has a global reputation for excellence, the evidence of which can be seen in the skylines of cities throughout the world.

“At British Steel we pride ourselves on delivering the products customers need and our highly-skilled teams are dedicated to ensuring we make world-class steel and deliver a world-class service.

“The sections market is highly competitive, so to be working with William Hare can only be good for both businesses.”

Family-run William Hare, which dates back to the 1880s and has an office in Scarborough, has extensive experience of fabricating and erecting structural steelwork, with its order book including projects on London’s 36-floor Walkie Talkie skyscraper and the design and fitting of the roof to transform the city’s Olympic Stadium.

David Hodgkiss, chief executive, added: “We are delighted to have agreed our contract with British Steel, ensuring we continue to supply market-leading products to customers.

“It is also pleasing to support UK manufacturing.

“However the main reason we are using British Steel is because of the quality of steel its makes.”

British Steel is owned by investor Greybull Capital, which paid India’s Tata £1 for its Long Products Division.

Alongside the Beam Mill, it runs a special profiles factory, in Skinningrove, east Cleveland, a Darlington steel finishing site and a York design base.

In late June, British Steel announced a deal with Teesside’s Materials Processing Institute to strengthen research and development on rail and construction goods.