Tata Steel faces a potential €27 million fine from the Dutch Environment Agency for emissions violations at two of its plants in the Netherlands.
The company has been given eight weeks to significantly reduce emissions of harmful substances. If Tata Steel fails to comply, it could face a fine of up to €27 million. Dutch authorities have warned that they could consider revoking the plant's license if its coking gas plant 2 does not meet legal standards within a year.
The Netherlands Environment Agency has reported that the chimneys of Tata Steel's coking gas plants 1 and 2 emit harmful substances, including heavy metals and carcinogenic PAHs.
According to a report published on December 19, inspections conducted in February and August found that Factory 1 emitted 20 times the legal limit and Factory 2 five times the legal limit. These violations are preceded by a follow-up assessment.
In response, Tata Steel expressed its commitment to upgrade the plants and disagreed with the content of the notice and its underlying reasons. The company looks forward to further discussions with the Environment Service, the province and other stakeholders.
“We find the manner in which these decisions were made very painful,” the steelmaker said in a statement, adding that the factory “plays an important role in our continued existence and our green steel plan.”
Both coking gas plants are subject to increased scrutiny from 2023. Earlier this year, Expert Group Health IJmond advised the closure of 2 outdated factories to reduce safety risks. However, Tata Steel plans to keep the plant open until at least 2029. The Environment Agency had earlier fined Tata for releasing toxic substances from the plant's “crude coke” production.
The Environment Agency has said the 2 factories do not meet legal requirements and indicated in October that it would enforce the measures. Tata Steel has six weeks to come up with an action plan to bring the factory into compliance with a year to implement the necessary changes. If the company fails to meet legal standards within that period, the environmental service can revoke its license.