One of the most short-lived fully integrated plants in the history of steel making was torn down 15 years ago.
Built by the Welsh steel maker Richard Thomas and Baldwins Ltd in 1962 the site became part of nationalised British Steel Corporation in 1967 and was called Llanwern works from then on.
In 1974 No. 3 blast furnace was the third to be built on the site and with it’s 11,2 m hearth and two tapping holes it was the first modern large volume furnace in Britain.
Furnaces No. 1 and No. 2 had a hearth diameter of 9,1 m.
Because of the lack of a deep-water iron ore unloading terminal the iron and steel making facilities, including  the three 175 t converters of the BOF shop, where closed down in 2001 after producing steel for less than 39 years.