British Steel nationalised in July
As SteelRadar previously reported, the UK government decided to bring British Steel into public ownership after negotiations with Jingye over the company’s future failed to reach an agreement. Following approval of the relevant legislation by the UK Parliament on 15 July 2026, British Steel was officially nationalised on 16 July.
The government said the decision was taken to protect the UK’s domestic steelmaking capacity, jobs and strategic steel supply.
Jingye reiterates compensation claim
In a new statement following the nationalisation, Jingye reiterated its call for “prompt, adequate and effective” compensation for its investments in British Steel. The company argued that the UK government’s decision violated investor rights and said it reserved the right to pursue legal action if necessary.
The UK government, meanwhile, plans to determine the compensation issue through an independent valuation process. The process will assess whether Jingye is entitled to compensation and, if so, the amount to be paid.
What happened?
Jingye acquired British Steel in 2020 and invested in the company’s facilities. However, disagreements emerged between the company and the UK government, particularly over the future of the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe.
Jingye raised plans to close the blast furnaces due to the costs of operating them, while the UK government argued that shutting down the facilities would result in the loss of the country’s primary steelmaking capacity and intervened. Although negotiations were held between the parties over British Steel’s future, no agreement was reached, and the process ultimately resulted in nationalisation.
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