Workers at Tata Steel’s limestone quarry and lime kiln operation in Cumbria could escape any cuts under new plans revealed by the company.

According to reports, Tata Steel Europe's chief executive Henrik Adam penned a letter to staff saying that 1,250 rather than 3,000 jobs could go as part of its response to a “severe” international steel market.

Around 1,000 jobs in the UK were said to be under threat following the announcement in November, although the reduction in the overall total for Europe could see that figure more than halved.

Tata Steel’s operations in Port Talbot, Wales, has long been expected to bear the brunt of any job losses, although the revelation has caused unease throughout Tata Steel’s sites across the UK.

Around 35 people work at its distinctive limestone quarry and lime kiln operations at Shap, close to junction 39 of the M6.

The site is part of Tata Steel’s strip products arm and supplies products to the giant’s operations at Port Talbot, Ijmuiden, in the Netherlands and Duisburg, in Germany.

It remains unclear if any job losses at Port Talbot, or any of the European plants supplied by the Shap site will have a whiplash effect in Cumbria.

In the letter, seen by the BBC, Mr Adam wrote: “We have identified a range of measures, including not replacing employees who have retired or left the business, which would minimise job losses.

“The proposed plans aim to secure the future of our company and do what's best for our employees given the very challenging circumstances we're currently facing.”

Job losses, a proposed new way of working to boost productivity and reduce bureaucracy as well as a focus on increasing sales of higher-value steel products, are all being progressed by the company as it deals with difficulties in the steel market and the fall out of its abandoned joint venture with German multinational thyssenkrupp AG.

The venture between the two – respectively the third and second biggest producers of flat carbon steel in the European Economic Area – was ditched in May last year when it became apparent the European Commission would block it due to competition concerns.

Tata Steel’s top brass said the deal had been critical to creating “a more sustainable business”.

The Unite union said it was now calling for urgent talks with the company, which employs around 8,500 people in the UK.

Unite the union is calling for urgent talks to discuss the implication for jobs at Tata’s UK sites, as it is expected that 1,250 jobs across Europe are under threat at the steel giant.

Last November it was expected that job losses could be in the region of 3,000 across Europe, but that figure has now been lowered.