Wales' first minister Vaughan Gething held talks with top Tata Group executives on Friday, as a part of the Welsh government's efforts hoping Tata Steel will relook at how it hopes to transition its operations in Port Talbot.
Tata Steel has already announced plans to shut down the blast furnaces at Port Talbot as a part of its plans to transition to greener steel manufacturing. Over 2,500 jobs are expected to be affected in the next 18 months due to this move.
Tata's plans to shift to greener steel manufacturing involve shutting the existing high-emission blast furnaces in Port Talbot and investing around 1.25 billion pounds in electric arc furnace technology.
"No one I think says Port Talbot as an industry shouldn’t change in the future. It's how that change is managed. For me, obviously, one of the big issues is the future of the workforce," Gething said.
Friday's talks held over two hours were candid and constructive, Welsh authorities say.
Gething expects there will be another round of talks between Tata and the trade unions in Port Talbot.
The UK Steel Committee had proposed partial continuity of blast furnace steel-making assets until electric arc furnace facilities are commissioned in Port Talbot. Tata Steel has said earlier this will not be feasible.
"I would like to see a future where Tatas continue to invest in the steel sector in Wales and in the thousands of loyal and highly skilled workers who are there," Gething said.
He is in India as a part of a trade mission to deepen ties with the country. Gething sees opportunities to collaborate in areas like life sciences, railways, energy, education and healthcare.
In March, the Welsh health minister had signed a deal with the Kerala government to recruit nurses from the state.
"With India, you know, the trade is hundreds of millions of pounds. We think there's a real base to build on that," said Gething.
He noted that there was a lot of corporate interest in investing in Wales.
"We have got real strengths in a range of areas that matter to India as well. Life sciences, we are a high growth potential area in the UK, cyber sector, is a high growth potential area as well and in Wales, we have massive renewable opportunities," said Gething.
T.V. Narendran, MD and CEO of Tata Steel said they had a productive discussion with the first minister.
"Tata Steel’s position remains that we are committed to the green transition of the UK steel industry, and our state-of-the-art electric arc furnace in Port Talbot will help safeguard steel sovereignty in Britain, preserve 5,000 jobs, support our customers, and reduce CO2 emissions by 5 million tonnes each year," he said.
Narendran added that Tata Steel is offering "the most generous financial support package ever offered to outgoing employees."
Additionally, they are committed to providing support with job searches, training, and upskilling activities, and have committed 20 million pounds to the transition board, he further said.
