WORKERS at SSI in Thailand have welcomed the arrival of the first shipment of steel made by the company’s Teesside works.
The 48,000 tonnes cargo completed its 33-day sea journey on Saturday, marking another milestone in the rebirth of a plant that was mothballed in January 2010 with the loss of more than 1,000 jobs.
The docking of the vessel Blue Fin came two months after the SSI Redcar blast furnace was relit.
Miss Wanna Tangcharoenching, a senior spokeswoman for the firm, said: “This first steel slab shipment to Thailand is another significant milestone reached by SSI.
This event not only symbolises our first step towards becoming a worldclass steel manufacturer, but also signifies the fighting spirit of SSI and our people and proves that anything is possible.”
When the shipment left Teesport it was valued at about £18.5m.
However, global steel prices have fallen five per cent in the past month and look set to slip further in response to faltering consumer demand for household goods and cars.
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