One of the world's largest electric arc furnaces is finally set to be shipped to the UK after months of delays caused by the war in Iran.
The furnace, capable of producing 3.2 million tons of steel a year, is scheduled to be despatched 'imminently' from China, but is unlikely to arrive before September, when it will be installed at the Port Talbot steelworks in Wales.
The near-14,000 nautical mile journey around South Africa is to avoid the troubled Middle East.
The giant cargo ship will first go to the Netherlands, where the furnace will be unloaded to be transported to South Wales.
The Mail on Sunday revealed earlier this year that the furnace, which is being supplied by Italian firm Tenova, was due to be shipped after the Chinese New Year holiday in February, but had been delayed as the Iran War sent shipping costs soaring, with the price of fuel oil surging 55 per cent.
