The £26m investment in the special profiles division aims to boost the specialised products that the plant can make.
British Steel has announced a £26m investment into its Skinningrove plant as part of a plan to boost its special profiles division.
The project - part of a £100m investment by British Steel's Chinese owners Jingye Group - will improve specialist products the company is able to sell on a global basis.
Advanced milling and machining capabilities at the Teesside plant mean it will be able to offer specialist products to the forklift and earthmoving industries, with hopes of growing export markets in various parts of the world.
The investment will see work switched from Darlington to Skinningrove, with the project beginning this year and expected to be complete by August 2023.
British Steel said the scale of the investment would create work for a range of contractors.
David Waine, British Steel's commercial director for special profiles, said: “This is an exciting project that will establish us as a leading manufacturer on the world stage.
"Our high-quality profiles are supplied globally to make components for a wide range of market sectors, such as the forklift and earthmoving industries, and many of these applications are extremely demanding.
“Our investment means we'll have world-class products manufactured to the tightest of tolerances. It will enable us to explore new growth opportunities for our forklift mast products in Europe, North and South America, India and Asia.
“And although our primary product offering will be for forklift mast production, we expect to be able to expand this to include other product applications too."
British Steel said it has strong demand for its products, particularly those used in the mining and construction sectors, and on high-reach trucks typically used in the booming warehouse sector.
The latest scheme builds on previous investments, including the installation of a £2m surface descaling system, a high-tech product processing centre and a robotic identification tracking control for each profile manufactured at the Skinningrove mill.