South Australian steelmaker Arrium will be sold to a British company, in a piece of good news for the embattled local manufacturing sector.
Arrium has been under the control of administrators since it collapsed last year, citing debts of more than $4 billion.
The company’s Whyalla steelworks is a key local rail manufacturing site: it was awarded a Federal Government contract after it went into administration to deliver 73,000 tonnes of steel rail to upgrade South Australia’s freight network, and has been linked to the potential Adani coal railway build in Queensland.
Administrator KordaMentha announced on Tuesday the steelworks will be acquired by British bidder GFG Alliance.
The sale is still subject to approval by Arrium’s creditors, and the Foreign Investment Review Board, but finalisation is expected to occur in late August.
“Subject to those approvals, this is a great result for Arrium Australia employees, and the city and people of Whyalla,” deed administrator Mark Mentha said.
“It ensures their future and ends 15 months of uncertainty.”
A Korean bidder had been the rumoured front-runner earlier in the sale process, but Mentha said the British firm ended up being the better option.
“Taking all factors into consideration, including the timeframes required to complete a sale, the administrators and sale advisors Morgan Stanley, decided the GFG Alliance offer was superior to the conditional offer of the Korean consortium with whom we were negotiating.”
South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill said the announcement was “great news for Whyalla and for the state, and offers a bright future for the workers and their families after so many months of uncertainty”.
Hi All,
So a British Company has Beat Out a Korean Firm for the Assets of Arrium. This will B Interesting to See What Happens, It does NOT Mean the Return of Good Times by any Means, Far From It. It Means “Right Sizing” the Company and Hopefully Make it a Going Concern if They are Lucky. Also Means Like It or Not MORE LAYOFFS Plus Things Like WAGE ROLL BACKS! Part of the Painfull Process of Fixing a Company, if the Unions Don;t Agree to Concessions there is Nothing Stopping These Companies from Walking Away and Saying – No Deal. Part of the Realities of what it Takes to Get a Buisness Going Again,