Tata ‘needs £1.5bn in subsidies’ to keep Port Talbot steelworks open

South Wales plant's owner reportedly wants government to help it move to greener production methods

The owner of the UK's largest steelworks has reportedly said it needs the government to agree to provide 1.5bn in subsidies in the next year to help it transition to greener production methods or it will have to look at site closures.

India's Tata group owns the vast Port Talbot steelworks in south Wales, which employs about 3,500 people and is one of only two in Britain capable of turning iron ore and coal into molten iron and steel. Overall, the group's subsidiary Tata Steel UK (TSUK), which earlier this week reported its first annual profit since 2009, employs about 8,000 staff in the UK.