Labor has accused the Tasmanian government of lending $20 million to Liberty Bell Bay despite receiving a report weeks earlier showing the manganese smelter was likely insolvent.
Deputy Labor leader Janie Finlay said the state and Commonwealth governments were given the financial information around June 24, 2025, before the loan was announced on August 18, 2025.
“On or around the 24th of June 2025, both the Commonwealth and the state governments were provided information that demonstrated that Liberty Bell Bay were insolvent,” she said.
Finlay questioned whether the government understood the information or pressed ahead regardless.
“Did they make a decision knowing that Liberty Bell Bay was insolvent? Did they not understand the information they had at hand?” she said.
“No fair-minded director of any company, no minister of a state should lend money to a company trading insolvent.”
More than 200 workers lost their jobs when Liberty Bell Bay went into voluntary administration earlier this month.
Industry Minister Felix Ellis said the government was well aware of the financial troubles surrounding Sanjeev Gupta’s GFG Alliance at the time and structured the loan accordingly.
“It’s no secret around the world that Sanjeev Gupta was in trouble at the time,” he said.
“That’s exactly why we structured up the loan specifically in the way that we did, for a tradable commodity with high-ranking security.”
Ellis described the loan as a “calculated risk” backed by legal advice and designed to protect taxpayers while giving the smelter a chance to restart.
“This is support not for Sanjeev Gupta, it’s for the workers of Liberty Bell Bay and to give the operation the best chance of restarting,” he said.
Ellis said Labor had supported the loan at the time and was now changing its position.
The $14.4 million pile of manganese ore purchased with part of the loan remains on site with receivers managing it.
