A UAE-based steel company has moved to buy Britain’s third-largest steel producer, just months after it was declared “hopelessly insolvent” and fell into the hands of official receivers.
Sky News has learnt that Arabian Gulf Steel Industries (AGSI), headquartered in Abu Dhabi, is one of a number of smaller parties that have lodged an offer to take control of the Speciality Steels UK (SSUK) business, which until last summer was owned by metals tycoon Sanjeev Gupta’s Liberty Steel empire.
The business collapsed into compulsory liquidation in August, leading to a scramble in Whitehall to find a buyer for it as part of efforts to preserve the UK’s steelmaking capabilities.
The SSUK business operates sites in Rotherham and Stocksbridge in South Yorkshire and employed around 1,500 people across its operations when it collapsed last summer.
This weekend, it was unclear how advanced any discussions were between AGSI and the official receiver, while the terms of any proposal were also unclear.
One source suggested that AGSI may be keen to receive financial assistance from the UK National Wealth Fund to support the takeover of SSUK and to restart steelmaking at its sites in Yorkshire.
the epitome of net zero steel.”
AGSI describes itself on its website as “the epitome of net zero steel” and has pledged to produce five million tonnes of steel by 2030, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than 95% compared to traditional steelmaking processes.
Asma Hussain, the founder and chief executive, privately owns and runs the company.
AGSI did not respond to an emailed request for comment, but a source expressed scepticism that it would ultimately acquire the Liberty Speciality Steels business.
In recent months, several other parties have also expressed interest in purchasing the operation.
Mr Gupta himself has secured backing from third parties, including BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, although the chances of him being selected to buy back the business appear extremely slim.
A spokesman for the Insolvency Service said, “We can confirm that the official receiver is putting forward bids for the sale of Speciality Steel UK.
“The sale process is ongoing with the aim of completing it as quickly as possible.”
In response to Sky News enquiries, a government spokesperson said, “We are committed to a bright and sustainable future for steelmaking and steelmaking jobs in the UK.
“The independent official receiver is carrying out its duties as liquidator, while we also ensure that employees and local communities are supported.”
The National Wealth Fund failed to respond to Sky News enquiries.
The sale process for SSUK comes during a period of wider uncertainty for the British steel sector, against the backdrop of US President Donald Trump’s tariff regime and the metal’s continued global glut.
In November, Sky News revealed that ministers were appointing bankers to Evercore to review options for the industry.
Business Secretary Peter Kyle and UK Government Investments (UKGI), the Whitehall agency that manages taxpayers’ interests in a number of companies, including the Post Office and Channel 4, are expected to consider whether to merge some of the remaining companies in the sector.
These would include British Steel, the Scunthorpe-based manufacturer, which is legally owned by China’s Jinghe Group but was seized by the government last April amid threats to close its remaining blast furnaces.
So far the government has spent millions of pounds on running British Steel.
The government’s move prevented the immediate loss of more than 3,000 jobs, although questions remain about the company’s viability as a standalone entity.
“We will continue to work with Xinghe to find practical, realistic solutions for the future of British Steel,” Industry Minister Chris McDonald said in a statement to parliament in November.
“Our long-term ambition for the company will require co-investment with the private sector to enable modernisation and decarbonisation, safeguarding taxpayers’ money and maintaining steelmaking in Scunthorpe.”
In 2024, ministers agreed to provide £500m of grant funding to the Indian company Tata Steel to install an electric arc furnace at its Port Talbot steelworks in Wales.
The new facility is expected to open in 2027 but has been strongly opposed by trade unions, angry that the new funding was effectively used to make thousands of redundancies at the plant.
