Caparo steel administrators announce plans to save a further 333 UK jobs

Administrators of Caparo steel have announced plans to save an additional 333 jobs in the UK.

PwC, which was appointed as the administrators of certain parts of its steel operations last month, said the the Capari Tubular Solutions business has been snapped up by the Gupta family.

The sale includes Caparo Precision Tubes Oldbury, Caparo Tube Components, Caparo Accles and Pollock, Hub Le Bas and the Caparo Tubes Tredegar asset.

Robert Moran, partner at PwC leading the Caparo sales process, said: "The sale of Caparo Tubular Solutions is a major boost for the Midlands economy, the employees of Caparo and more widely for the UK steel industry.

"This deal preserves all 333 jobs at Caparo Tubular Solutions, which manufactures, distributes and supplies advanced tube components and parts for the automotive and aerospace industries in the West Midlands and South Wales."

The company previously revealed that 452 jobs were due to be cut, with the heaviest hit being in the West Midlands.

Matthew Hammond, Midlands region chairman for PwC and lead administrator, said: "We are delighted to have made further substantial progress with this deal.

"We had targeted selling a number of the Caparo businesses during November."

Unions have blamed the partial administration on low-price steel imports.

"This is a sliver of good news for workers in the steel industry," Russell Farrington, regional organiser of the GMB union, said.

"GMB warmly welcome this for the Caparo workers we represent in the West Midlands. We have made progress on the energy prices front for the UK stee lindustry. We now need action on dumping."