NEWPORT council’s leader has said he has been assured Tata Steel will remain firmly rooted in the city – despite a mothballing plan for its Llanwern Steelworks.

On Wednesday unions said Tata was looking to axe 250 jobs at the steelworks as part of its proposal to temporarily stop production at its hot strip mill.

It hot strip mill at its Port Talbot works will continue to produce steel. 

The firm has taken similar action before, mostly recently in December 2011. It also offered workers time off at half pay in March 2012 because of tough market conditions. 

But Cllr Bob Bright said he had been told the company will look to restart production at Llanwern once it is financially viable to do so. 

He said: “It is always concerning to hear news about changes to employment levels at Tata Steel’s Llanwern operation. I understand however, that mothballing of certain facilities in Newport is a tactic that has been employed a number of times in recent years, the decision being reversed each time the order book improves. I have been assured that Newport remains a strategically important location for Tata who have recently invested in new commercial offices at this location.” 

Wales’ first minister Carwyn Jones said it was vital the firm is helped by the Westminster government with high energy costs.

He said: “When compared to other countries, even in Europe, it’s very difficult for our industries to use a lot of energy to actually be competitive.

“Now we’ve said this many, many times to the UK government and they have not responded effectively yet, but we do need to see action to help not just Tata but all those industries who do use a lot of energy, to actually become competitive compared to those industries they compete against in Europe.”

Business minister Anna Soubry said her department will continue to work closely with steel companies and that it has "provided steelmakers with millions of pounds in compensation for energy costs and recently voted to extend anti-dumping measures on certain Chinese steel products." 

When the news was announced Newport East MP Jessica Morden said the move was “devastating for all affected workers and their families,” while unions said they were worried about the viability of the company remaining in the city.

A Tata spokesman said energy costs at Llanwern are considerable higher for the company than at Port Talbot. He said while electricity at Port Talbot’s hot strip mill is taken from other parts of its steelworks, it is taken from the National Grid at Llanwern.