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Tata Steel will end operations at its Morfa coke ovens in Port Talbot this week. Chief executive of Tata Steel, Rajesh Nair, announced in a statement that the closure is due to "significantly deteriorating operational stability."

It is understood that that approximately 200 workers will be impacted by this decision. The national officer for steel from the Community union, Alun Davies, said that their "number one concern is its members' safety", but recognised the decision was a "massive blow".

Originally, it was planned to close the ovens in June, along with blast furnace five under Tata proposals.

In his statement, Mr Nair said: "We regret to announce that we have been forced to make the decision to cease operations at Morfa Coke Ovens from Wednesday, March 20, as a result of significantly deteriorating operational stability. In our recent discussions with our trades union colleagues, the need to cease operations at the Morfa Coke Ovens and one of the two blast furnaces this summer is understood."

"The performance of the coke ovens has been deteriorating over many months, despite some herculean efforts by the teams there. The condition of the ovens has now worsened to a level making continued operation untenable. We will now begin the process of safely closing and purging the coke ovens, and ceasing operations at the adjoining By-Products plant.", reports .

"We will work hard over the coming weeks to understand the aspirations of the current coke ovens workforce in alignment with our ongoing wider consultation programme. I'd like to give my sincere thanks and appreciation to all those who have worked at the Morfa Coke Ovens since its commissioning in 1981 I have always been struck by the spirit and camaraderie of the workforce there who have always given everything to the plant, often in very difficult circumstances. Your efforts have been critical to the survival of the Port Talbot works, and you should always feel very proud for having been part of that team."

"We have been clear in our current restructuring proposals that many of our heavy-end assets in Port Talbot are at their end-of-life capability. As part of our efforts to stem our current losses, and given the condition of the assets, we propose to close the heavy end iron and steelmaking assets at Port Talbot within this calendar year in a phased manner. Tata Steel is investing £1.25bn investment in electric arc furnace-based capacity which will secure steel making in Port Talbot for the long term -and facilitate a transition to low-CO2 steelmaking. Consultation on these aspects is currently ongoing."

Alun Davies, the national officer for steel at the steelworkers' union Community, commented: "The early closure of the coke ovens is a massive blow but we knew they have been deteriorating and our number one concern is the safety of our members. Tata know the unions will not accept any compulsory redundancies and we are working to conclude negotiations on an enhanced redundancy and retention package. Regretfully, the coke ovens were always going to close during the transition period, but once the national consultations conclude we will ballot for industrial action should Tata confirm their intention to close Blast Furnace Number 4."