Australia´s peak steel industry association, the Australian Steel Institute (ASI), has sought government assistance to stem a surge in low-priced, imported fabricated steelwork, which it says is threatening the local industry. On November 20, the ASI lodged a Safeguard application with the Federal Government, requesting it apply temporary emergency provisions to protect the industry. This action follows several months of campaigning by the ASI against steelwork imports which it claims are threatening the viability of domestic manufacturing capacity. In a statement, the ASI´s chief executive, Mark Cain, said the Australian fabricated structural steel industry stands at a critical juncture. Mr Cain said his organisation had been advised that more than a dozen steel fabrication businesses in western Sydney alone had closed in the past 18 months, the majority due to the effect of competing against fabricated structural steel imports. The ASI says the national impact could be at least three times greater than this. In the statement, the ASI gave details of some affected businesses which are still operating. They include: a family-owned and operated business in south-western Sydney which has experienced such a decline in

fabricated steel sales that the capacity utilisation of its manufacturing facility now stands at just 27%. Three years ago, it was 90%. Next, a Queensland-based steel fabricator which has incurred such operational losses over the period 2023 to 2025 that it has had to make 35% of its workforce redundant. Finally, a Victorian-based business which has experienced a decline in sales revenue of $22 million between 2024 and 2025 due to competing against imports. The business which employs 25 people is now critically assessing its ongoing viability.

A Safeguard measure can be requested when an industry believes a “surge” in the importation of certain products has caused or threatens to cause serious injury to the domestic industry. Safeguard measures are temporary and are generally designed to reduce the surge of imports by limiting supply, rather than impacting price. The measures must be product-specific and they must be applied to all imports irrespective of the source. An import “surge” justifying a Safeguard action can be a real increase in imports (an absolute increase); or it can be an increase in the imports’ share of a shrinking market, even if the import quantity has not increased. The ASI sent its application to the Minister for Industry and Innovation, Tim Ayers. If he feels it has merit, he will send it to the Treasurer, Jim Chalmers. In past years, if the Treasurer approved the application, it would have been sent to the Productivity Commission where a Safeguard investigation would commence. However, on August 28 of this year, the Government declared that all such matters would hereafter go to the Anti-Dumping Commission. Typically, an investigation engages with importers, exporters and other interested parties to get their views and evidence on the matter; before reaching its conclusion. Given the current vulnerability of the steel fabrication industry in Australia, the ASI has asked that this issue be given urgent attention.

The ASI is right to draw attention to the threat that external forces pose to Australian manufacturing. However, the steel industry needs to keep in mind that destructive consequences can also come from people bearing gifts. Arriving at a time of crisis, these quick-fix merchants can bedazzle with their apparent wealth and global influence. Politicians are especially susceptible to the allure of such characters.

When the British industrialist, Sanjeev Gupta, strode along the main street of Whyalla in 2017 after buying the steelworks, he was feted as the “saviour” of steel in Australia. Fast forward to the present day and the Australian taxpayer is having to fork out $2.4 billion to buy back the now bankrupt operations. Mr Gupta´s private family business, GFG Alliance, owns a mix of steel sector companies in Australia, with InfraBuild now being the jewel in the crown. However, some of Mr Gupta´s Australian firms are following a path similar to that taken by various of his European interests which in the past few years have gone bankrupt, or are presently shuttered, or require government assistance, or are being sued by customers and lenders. Since 2021 Britain´s Serious Fraud Office has been investigating GFG Alliance for suspected fraud, fraudulent trading and money laundering. GFG denies any wrongdoing.

The recent histories of the Liberty Bell Bay smelter and Tahmoor Coal, which are both ultimately owned by Mr Gupta, give an insight into the business ethos of GFG Alliance and how the lives of ordinary people can be badly derailed by the decisions of those higher up the chain.

Liberty Bell Bay in northern Tasmania operates Australia’s only manganese alloy smelter and has a workforce of about 250 permanent staff. It was purchased by GFG Alliance in 2020 and is thus a private company, but needs to lodge annual reports with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). It failed to do so between 2021 and 2024, prompting the regulator to take court action. The NSW Supreme Court made orders requiring Liberty Bell Bay to lodge its outstanding reports with ASIC by October. The court extended that deadline twice, but on November 18 denied a request for a further extension and ordered Liberty Bell Bay to pay ASIC’s costs. In June, the smelter suspended operations and sent workers home on paid leave for a month, citing ore supply issues. When ore did become available from its supplier, Liberty Bell Bay didn’t have the cash to order any. In August, the Tasmanian Government stepped in with a $20 million loan for 23,000 tonnes of ore, but production still hasn’t resumed and the ore is sitting untouched. The state government subsequently wrote to GFG Alliance, saying the company had defaulted on the conditions of its loan. Then, in late October, Liberty Bell Bay announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Steel International Trading Company (SITC), an exports company based in the ex-Soviet state of Georgia. The understanding is for SITC to take over operations of the Tasmanian smelter on a lease arrangement for up to five years. Imagine the surprise this caused in Hobart´s halls of power given that its loan with Liberty Bell Bay stipulates the Tasmanian Government has first-ranking security over the smelter asset; and that any lease or change of control proposal would require the state’s consent.

The Tahmoor colliery in NSW has been closed since February because it couldn´t pay suppliers. About 500 workers were stood down with pay, but half of them have since been sacked. In 2024, Tahmoor Coal was profitable, making $85.7 million. But significant funds were diverted from it to Mr Gupta´s interests elsewhere, including a $354.8 million loan to OneSteel Manufacturing (OSM) at Whyalla. OSM went under earlier this year, and Tahmoor Coal´s parent company, Liberty Primary Metals Australia, entered voluntary administration in early November. All are Gupta companies. The NSW Government is owed $29.4 million by Tahmoor Coal in unpaid royalties and has placed a licence restriction on the company. This gives the state a legal hold over the asset, preventing the company from borrowing against or selling the mine until the debt is cleared.

Beware of strangers bearing gifts.