Some workers at northern Tasmania’s troubled Liberty Bell Bay smelter could go without pay for a month as the facility enters “limited operations” from mid-June.
The manganese alloy producer, which employs around 250 people and accounts for about 7% of Tasmania’s total energy use, is scaling back production.
Staff have been told to take accrued leave or risk being stood down without pay.
The Australian Workers’ Union says the directive has created significant anxiety among workers, particularly younger employees with little or no leave saved up.
Smelter owner GFG Alliance has blamed the situation on ore supply disruptions following cyclone damage at South32’s GEMCO facility, along with global price volatility and new US tariffs.
But Federal Industry Minister Tim Ayres has questioned these claims, telling The Australian yesterday he was “deeply concerned” about GFG’s financial position.
“What I want to see is Liberty management and their parent company (GFG) in Hobart in front of the Tasmanian government, supported by the federal government, with open books and a clear plan to resume production,” he said.
“There are hundreds of Tasmanian workers and contractors engaged here. It’s an important facility that has received significant support from the community and successive governments.”
“They owe it to Tasmanians to be really clear about the state of the business.”
Premier Jeremy Rockliff has called on the federal government to match the $2.4 billion bailout recently offered to GFG’s Whyalla steelworks in South Australia.
He said he engaged with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week, as well as with Liberty Bell Bay and George Town’s mayor “over the past week”.
“I made it clear to the Prime Minister that Tasmania expects the federal government to play a pivotal role in securing supply chain opportunities, acknowledging their Future Made in Australia policy, which seeks to strengthen sovereign capability,” Rockliff said.
“Tasmania fully expects the federal government to do all it can to support steel-making capability in Australia and secure the operations’ future.”
“I expect that, should Federal Government support be required to secure the operations and future of our manganese smelter, they’ll be afforded the same opportunities that were offered to other smelters.”
For now, Rockliff says the priority is backing the workers and the George Town community, which relies heavily on the facility.
“Our focus is firmly on them. We are doing all we can to secure their future,” he said.
