Nyrstar Australia asks for government handout as it loses 'tens of millions a month', struggles to compete against China

Sky News AU

12 hours ago

The CEO of a major Australian manufacturer has begged various state and federal governments for a handout as losses mount to "tens of million a month" while China allegedly distorts the market.
Metal processor Nyrstar Australia has struggled with loss making ventures in South Australia and Tasmania while its old infrastructure puts it behind competing nations.
The lead and zinc refiner's boss Matthew Howell has claimed that China is 'distorting global markets' and 'eroding global operating margins' which has 'imperilled the commercial viability of domestic processing' across western nations.
'Without decisive and targeted public policy support to address the imbalance in the global refining market and modernise infrastructure, Australia risks falling further behind in this critical minerals processing,' Mr Howell said on ABC RN.
'And worse, we may lose our existing sovereign refining capability in zinc and lead and of course once lost, our ability to rebuild our smelting infrastructure and workforce pipeline would be near impossible due to cost, time and skills lost.'
The boss of Nyrstar, which employs more than 1400 people across Tasmania and South Australia, said government support would be critical as the company battles with China's 'distortion'.
'What we need to do is undertake a 22-month engineering feasibility study and while we do that we are operating in a heavily distorted market where we are losing tens of millions a month because of the actions of state actors,' Mr Howell said.
'That's why we believe it is right and proper for governments to provide transitionary support to protect these strategically important industries.'
Mr Howell has claimed the Chinese government subsidises companies to purchase Australian materials at prices local smelters could not afford.
China then subsidises the processing of these materials and enforces export controls on the finished metals.
A spokesperson for Industry Minister Tim Ayres said the government was looking into the challenges facing Nyrstar.
'We will maintain our focus on how best to secure our critical minerals and strategic materials supply, including the contribution of zinc and lead refining to production of valuable by-products,' the spokesperson said, per the Australian Financial Review.