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<p>The Government is firmly committed to supporting a productive and vibrant UK steel
sector. We are working with the sector, the unions and devolved administrations to
support the UK steel sector to develop a long-term sustainable future for the UK steel
industry. My Department commissioned independent research to identify high value opportunities
for UK steel, worth up to £3.8 billion a year by 2030.</p><p> </p><p>In the 2018 Budget,
the Government announced an Industrial Energy Transformation Fund with investment
of £315 million to help businesses with high energy use to cut their bills and transition
UK industry to a low carbon future.</p><p> </p><p>Since 2013, the Government has provided
more than £312m in compensation to the steel sector to make energy costs more competitive,
including over £53 million during 2018. We are working hard to make sure that UK producers
of steel have the best possible chance of competing for and winning contracts across
all Government procurement. Since 2016, all Government departments and arms-length
bodies are required to consider socio-economic and environmental factors when procuring
steel.</p><p> </p><p>The recent announcement of two important new funding programmes
will help the steel industry in its efforts to remain competitive while reducing emissions
and supporting the decarbonisation of the UK economy to achieve our ambitious 2050
net-zero targets: the £250m Clean Steel Fund and the planned £100m Low Carbon Hydrogen
Production Fund.</p>
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