£500m major Network Rail supply contract announced for British Steel

COMPANY WILL SUPPLY OVER 337,000 TONNES OF RAIL TRACK OVER FIVE YEARS

- By IVAN MORRIS POXTON [e-mail] @MoPo97

A MAJOR £500m rail track supply contract has been agreed between British Steel and Network Rail.

The contract will last five years and see British Steel supply over 337,000 tonnes of rail track.

It will help cement the future of the company and the thousands of manufacturing jobs it supports in the Scunthorpe area.

The Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander visited British Steel's Scunthorpe plant on Wednesday, June 17, to announce the deal and its details.

It represents the first major public procurement since the Government took emergency action in April to save the Scunthorpe plant from closure.

Legislation was passed over a single Saturday so the Government could direct British Steel. Ownership remains for now with Jingye Group.

"This landmark contract truly transforms the outlook for British Steel and its dedicated workforce in Scunthorpe, building on its decades-long partnership with Network Rail to produce rail for Britain's railways," Ms Alexander, will say.