Climate Changed
Steel Tycoon Looks to Skies for Future of U.K.'s Last Mills
- Liberty Steel founder Sanjeev Gupta investing in renewables
- Clean energy could cut manufacturing costs without subsidy
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How do you turn green one of industry’s biggest energy users? For one U.K. steel magnate, the answer is to become the nation’s largest generator of renewable power.
As cheap imports erode Britain’s steel industry, Sanjeev Gupta plans to cut production costs at his Liberty Steel Inc. by doubling its collection of wind, hydroelectric and biofuel assets. The 46-year-old tycoon is spending almost $1 billion over the next three years on renewables, including the U.K.’s first subsidy-free windfarm, in a effort to be self-sufficient in energy.