Steel Strip

Steel workers’ union Community has asked the Environment Agency to hold in trust the carbon credits accrued by Corus’s doomed plant in Redcar until production resumes.

Corus is mothballing its historic steel making operation in Teesside, which threatens the livelihoods of 1,600 workers in one of the country’s worst unemployment blackspots.

The closure has led to concerns that Corus, owned by Indian billionaire Ratan Tata’s business empire, may seek to trade the carbon credits that were freely allocated to the plant.

The union’s general secretary Michael J Leahy said holding the green allowances in trust would be a ‘responsible act’ that would reassure the Teesside community.

He added: ‘I am calling upon the government to take action to ensure that Tata Corus do not profit through their destruction of the Teesside community.’

A Corus spokesman declined to comment.

Above Report from This is Money

Corus looks set to receive at least £250m in carbon credits over the next three years, at the same time as they are building new plants in India. The credits come from removing existing carbon emissions within from current plants. Assuming that the carbon credits were designed to reduce global emissions I cannot understand how closing a plant in the UK and building new plants in India will reduce overall climatic carbon emissions.

Furthermore, I assume if the plant does not close then Corus will not gain the credits. This would be a barrier to selling the plant to other interested parties, as it appears that Corus would benefit more financially by closing the plant than by selling it. Furthermore closing the plant removes the possibility of future competition.

When Tata purchased Corus, it was argued that they paid too higher price at the time. Considering that they got the Corus order book, a distribution network, an entry in to the European market maybe the “end game” will prove it to be a bargain.

Is it not time that the European union and the UK in particular made it a little less attractive to export jobs and contribute to the destruction of our manufacturing base?

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