THE man who left steel firm Corus after leading initial attempts to find a buyer for its Teesside Cast Products plant has landed the top job at the Redcar firm with its new owner.
Phil Dryden has been appointed president of SSI UK, the company launched by Thai steel giant SSI which last month sealed a deal to take over the mothballed TCP plant from Corus.
Dryden was the division director of Corus Long Products until he left in a management shake-up eight months ago. In that job he was in charge of the TCP plant, which shut a year ago with the loss of 700 jobs, as well as Engineering Steels, Corus Tubes and Construction & Industrial.
He also was in charge of leading efforts to find new partners for TCP after an international consortium of buyers walked away from a 10-year supply deal a year before that and which led to the company’s desperate search for buyers or customers.
His departure, in a management clear-out which Corus described at the time as natural wastage, met with criticism from unions and campaigners calling for the plant to be kept open.
It was eventually mothballed in February 2010 after new customers could not be found and with the loss of around 1,000 jobs.
Dryden said: “I am excited about the prospect of leading the team that will restore Teesside Cast Products to full production.
“At a time when the industrial footprint of the UK seems to shrink every year, this is a great opportunity to play a role in securing the future of a major steel plant in the North East.”
New owner SSI said it wanted to appoint Dryden because of his long experience of the Teesside operation.
Win Viriyaprapaikit, president of SSI, said: “Phil’s knowledge of Teesside Cast Products and significant experience in the UK steel industry will prove invaluable to SSI UK. We are delighted to have attracted a candidate of this calibre to the company.”
SSI’s £291m deal with Corus owners Tata will be followed by the creation of at least 800 jobs at the plant and a further £329m investment, said SSI.
Dryden joined Corus in April 2004 as managing director, Corus Strip Products UK, and is best-known within the steel industry for turning around the South Wales business in that role.
A chemical engineer by training, he previously worked in the chemical and electronic component industries, spending the early part of his career at BP and Exxon in a variety of roles in the UK, USA and Middle East.
Dryden’s predecessor, SSI UK interim managing director David Reid, will remain a board director of SSI UK while returning to his previous role as managing partner of Metals Strategies Inc, a consultancy.
Viriyaprapaikit said: “I would also like to thank David Reid for the important part he played in negotiating the acquisition of Teesside Cast Products and establishing strong relationships with key stakeholders during that process.
“David will remain on the board of SSI UK, providing continuity as Phil settles into his new role.”