InfraBuild has announced it has taken delivery of two new electric arc furnace (EAF) bowls at its Laverton melt shop in Victoria. The additions are part of an investment program which aims to increase the site´s production by 25% to one million metric tonnes each year. The two bowls are due to come into operation this month and will enable a larger tap mass and increased output. The bowls are part of a rotation system in which one will be re-lined offline and exchanged with the operating bowl approximately every six weeks. In a company statement, InfraBuild´s CEO, Francisco Irazusta, said the new equipment prepares Laverton for the next stage of growth. “Investing in our manufacturing assets is how we continue to grow, improve efficiency and meet increasing demand for more sustainable steel,” he said. The EAF bowls are one of the critical upgrades that will help Laverton deliver on its future one million metric tonnes production target, Mr Irazusta said. Additionally, in Sydney, InfraBuild has ambitions this year to lift capacity to 680,000 metric tonnes per annum. The company is also in the process of identifying the regulatory approvals required to permit it to move to an output of one million metric tonnes annually.

InfraBuild’s circular steel making model at the Victorian and NSW sites uses EAF technology to recycle scrap metal and produce steel for Australian infrastructure and construction projects and other sectors. The steelmaker’s scrap-based EAF technology emits approximately 70% lower CO2 emissions per tonne of steel than traditional blast furnace methods, according to 2023 data from the World Steel Association. “Our ability to produce more sustainable steel means we are here and ready to help our customers and the construction industry transform so we have a more sustainable construction industry,” said Mr Irazusta.

Meanwhile, BHP may have run into a problem with one of its biggest trading partners – China. On September 30, the news agency Bloomberg reported that China´s state-run iron ore buyer had instructed the country´s major steelmakers and traders to temporarily cease purchasing any new BHP cargoes. The `ban´ remains unconfirmed and may be nothing more than a price negotiation tactic. However, the stakes are high. Nearly 60% of Australia´s exports to China in the year to May 2024 were iron ore. Losing any significant amount of that trade would impact the Australian economy. BHP alone supplies around 13% of China´s iron ore imports. Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, immediately said he was concerned by the reports, while the Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, quickly got on the phone to BHP´s chief executive, Mike Henry. No comments were made public.

There is history to this impasse. For decades, Australia´s miners negotiated with hundreds of individual Chinese steel mills and traders to establish the price each paid for iron ore. This method of setting the prices worked particularly well for the Australian miners. China was a price taker, not a price maker. However, as it rose to become the producer of almost 60% of the world´s crude steel, China became increasingly aware that it could (and should) exert greater leverage somewhere along the line. Thus, in 2022, the Chinese government created the China Mineral Resources Group (CMRG). The CMRG is a state-run, centralised agency, intended to consolidate purchases on behalf of China’s steel industry. One large powerful voice, instead of many small ones. It is between the CMRG and BHP that talks have allegedly broken down. Not surprisingly, Rio Tinto and Fortescue are also watching closely as the CMRG is (perhaps) flexing its muscle for the first noticeable time.

“We view this ‘ban’ as more of a negotiating tactic, most likely an effort to secure lower long-term prices,” Kaan Peker at RBC Capital Markets told the ABC. “Ultimately, if prolonged, the ban risks squeezing steel margins or forcing selective output cuts (and higher steel prices with ripple effects into construction costs, autos and infrastructure). But China cannot realistically walk away from BHP supply altogether,” he added. The Western Australia Premier, Roger Cook, said he believed the Chinese were merely wrangling over the iron ore price. “I had a briefing from [BHP iron ore chief] Tim Day earlier this week. He’s saying the negotiations are tough and are subject to a certain amount of strategic gamesmanship for want of a better description,” Mr Cook said.

Elsewhere, the Australian Steel Institute in collaboration with Construction Quality Australia has created a Fabrication Construction Data Report index, also known as a Manufacturer Data Report (MDR). The index is designed to clarify the documentary deliverables required across the lifecycle of steel fabrication and installation, supporting both compliance and collaboration, particularly for fabricators and constructors. The MDR marks a significant step forward in aligning industry practices with the requirements of AS/NZS 5131:2016 – Structural Steelwork: Fabrication and Erection. The index has been reviewed by all parties involved for completeness and accuracy, though users are reminded that it is not a substitute for reading and understanding AS/NZS 5131 itself.

Finally, some fun facts. The Australian Financial Review has reported that KordaMentha is being paid about $3 million per month as the administrator of the Whyalla Steelworks. What´s more, back in 2023 the British industrialist, Sanjeev Gupta, bought a 40-room hotel in Whyalla for $4.7 million. Apparently, that´s where numerous KordaMentha employees have been staying whilst working on the administration. Now, however, the hotel is up for sale as the administrator tries to bring more cash in through the door. The administration process has been running for six months and is likely to extend until mid-2026 as a sale of the business is finalised.