British Steel has won a major order worth tens of millions of pounds. The company will supply 36,000 tonnes of rail to ERG International Group. The rail will be used on a 599km high-speed electric railway in Turkey. This new railway connects Ankara and İzmir, cutting travel time and carbon emissions. British Steel calls the deal an “eight-figure agreement.” This contract created 23 new jobs at its Scunthorpe site in north Lincolnshire. The plant has restarted round-the-clock rail production for the first time in over ten years. The deal was supported by UK Export Finance. It gives a financial boost to British Steel, which has been loss-making. However, the future of the Scunthorpe steelworks remains uncertain. Around 3,500 people work there making long steels for railways, buildings, and bridges. British Steel was bought by Greybull Capital in 2016 but went insolvent three years later. China’s Jingye Group took it over early in 2020 but planned to close Scunthorpe last year due to losses of £700,000 a day. The UK government intervened with emergency laws to take control. Since then, losses have grown to £1.2 million daily, totaling £359 million in parliamentary reports. Industry experts doubt how long the government will support British Steel. UK steel production is at its lowest in over a century. Gareth Stace, director general of UK Steel, said, “Deals such as the one with ERG were essential to underpinning a sustainable turnaround.” He added, “Rail is a strategically vital, high-value product and central to British Steel’s long-term plan.” Stace urged the government to improve UK import safeguards and reduce energy costs for steel makers. He noted, “Contracts alone cannot address the structural pressures facing the sector.”