THE entire plant and equipment of a Newport steelworks where around 130 people lost their jobs last month, is to be sold at auction.

AIC Steel Limited went into administration on October 4, and it had been hoped that the business could be sold as a going concern - but its 10-acre site at Usk Way has since closed.

There were 101 staff made redundant initially, and a further 29 who had been kept on to, according to a statement at the time "continue to assist the business" have also gone.

An online auction will take place this month and next, involving more than 400 lots.

The company was a specialist fabricator supplying products for use in building frameworks, bridges and sports stadia.

The latter included the Ashton Gate stadium in Bristol.

It is anticipated that the online auction will attract buyers from across the world, as well as locally. It will open in mid-November, and a viewing day has been arranged for November 29.

“This is an important auction that includes upwards of 400 lots ranging from heavy industrial steel fabrication machinery, gantry cranes, welding rectifiers, materials handling equipment, forklifts and commercial vehicles," said Malcolm Good, director of machinery and business assets at auctioneer and valuation specialist Eddisons.

"The machinery is of a very specialist nature and we are hoping to attract buyers from all over the world, together with buyers from the UK.

“It was the aim of the administrators to sell the business as a going concern but unfortunately that has not proved possible and the decision to arrange an online auction of the company’s assets was taken at the end of October.”

Cataloguing of items is ongoing and bidding for lots - which includes equipment made by global machinery specialists such as Ficep, KONE, JCB, and Ford - will close at 2pm on Tuesday December 6. For details, visit www.eddisons.com/machinery-business-assets/assets-for-sale/