A major steel reinforcement supplier is “considering its next steps” after ministers refused to make a decision to redevelop its only UK production site.

Steel giant ArcelorMittal, which claims to produce 30 percent of the country’s steel framework, said Construction News in May it would withdraw from the UK market if plans to regenerate Chatham docks in Kent continued.

However, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has decided not to call for planning permission, a government spokesperson said. CN. This leaves the decision on the project in the hands of local authorities.

In a statement, Matt Brooks, managing director of ArcelorMittal Kent Wire (AMKW), said the company was “considering (its) next steps.”

He added: “We are extremely surprised by this vision given the importance of the docks to the entire steel and construction sectors. »

ArcelorMittal’s AMKW division has been producing reinforcements at Chatham Docks since 1988, supplying the UK’s largest infrastructure projects including HS2, Thames Tideway and Crossrail.

Developer Peel Waters is looking to develop part of the Chatham Docks industrial estate to create 31,000 square meters of scalable workspace. The development, Basin3, aims to attract businesses in the creative, manufacturing, technology and life sciences sectors with new green spaces and waterfront walks.

Peel Waters said in planning documents it was working to relocate existing tenants, but ArcelorMittal argued the waterfront location was ideal for receiving raw materials from its parent company in Hamburg. She also objected to the potential cost of the move, after the company racked up a £7 million bill to move its premises 500 meters further away in 2015.

AMKW Managing Director Phil Taylor previously said CN the company had presented alternative proposals creating 100,000 square meters of industrial space on the site, which the council rejected.

The steel company would cut 800 jobs if the site closed, Taylor added.

In planning documents submitted in January, Peel Waters estimated its proposals would create a net increase of 430 jobs, taking into account the displacement of existing workers.

After Medway Council granted planning permission for Basin3 in May, ArcelorMittal called on the new government to review the project after the election. The plans failed to progress during the election period, after the then local MP Kelly Tolhurst asked Michael Gove, the then housing secretary, to intervene.

The council is expected to make a formal planning decision “early next week”, according to Peel Waters.