The Norwegian startup steel company Blastr has been recognized as the preferred bidder for the previously Liberty-owned Speciality Steel UK (SSUK), which includes plants in Rotherham and Stocksbridge, Fastmarkets reported on Thursday, April 16.
Representatives of the UK industry expressed the hope that the selected bidder would eventually resume steel smelting at the Electric Arc Furnace (EDP) facility in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, which has been virtually inactive since 2024.
The UK government announced on Wednesday that "an exclusivity period has been agreed with the preferred bidder, marking the next stage of the future sale agreement," without disclosing the preferred bidder's identity.
This was part of the UK government's efforts to return SSUK to private ownership following its liquidation under previous owner Liberty Steel in August 2025 and subsequent transition to public administration.
The process was expected to last about five weeks, during which the bidder is expected to advance its bid, the UK government said.
A British industry source confirmed on Thursday that Blastr was the preferred bidder for the division, although he was unsure of the company's plans at this stage.
It was expected that the assets would be acquired with the intention of resuming steel production, he added, noting that alternative use would be uneconomical given the nature and cost of the facilities.
Norwegian Blastr was founded in 2021 with the intention of becoming an integrated producer of low-carbon steel.
Earlier, the company announced plans to increase the production capacity of hot-rolled and cold-rolled steel by about 2.5 million tons per year due to the production of EDP in Finland.
In 2023, the company also announced that it was exploring plans to build a direct reduction pellet (DR) plant in the UK in Teesside, in the northeast of England, to supply direct reduction pig iron to its planned steelmaking facilities in Finland.
A major market participant
A source in the UK said that the company was unable to continue smelting steel due to a lack of financial resources for the purchase of raw materials such as ferrous scrap, although he added that the equipment at the enterprises was ready for launch as soon as financing conditions allowed.
Prior to its closure, it was one of the largest domestic scrap consumer companies, along with Tata Steel's oxygen furnaces in Port Talbot and Celsa Steel's complex in Wales, which is currently owned by Sev.en Global Investments.
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