George Town locals are worried about their region's future as smelter limits operations

Australia Broadcast Center

19-05-2025

Liberty Bell Bay, near the northern Tasmanian community of George Town, is Australia's only manganese alloy smelter, and a major employer in the region.
On Monday, the company, which has more than 250 full-time workers, announced it would "enter a period of limited operations".
Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff has called it a period of "care and maintenance".
It remains unclear how long it will last.
Global ore supply issues, volatile prices, and extensive US tariffs have all been cited as reasons for the decision.
And while the company has said there would not be any forced redundancies, locals say any jobs lost will be a hit to the region.
Michael Wuksta has lived in George Town for almost three decades.
He said Monday's announcement was not the first time the region had braced for the smelter's closure.
"But it might be the last time," Mr Wuksta said.
In 2019, the smelter's future was in doubt after its former owner, South32, announced it was reviewing its operations, before it was purchased by international company GFG Alliance the following year.
Mr Wuksta said if it were to close, it would not be good for the wider community.
In February, another GFG-owned entity, the Whyalla steelworks, was forced into administration by the South Australian government due to its failure to pay back its growing debt.
The federal government then announced a $2.4 billion joint state-federal support package to protect jobs and ensure the continuation of the steelworks.
George Town resident Irene Maynard said the announcement that work would now pause at Liberty Bell Bay had left her surprised.
Ms Maynard said employees at the smelter — including her grandson — were upset.
"If there's going to be jobs missing, it's going to be pretty bad.
"I think the government should step in, but whether they do or not — that's a different thing."
Another local, Colin Himmelberger, said the prospect of job losses was scary for the area's future.
"And if a couple of hundred people lose their job, it's not going to be very good for the town at all.
"It's hard enough to find a job these days without something like this happening.
"Where are they going to go?"
Mr Rockliff said he understood about 40 Liberty staff would be needed during the care and maintenance phase.
"Naturally we're very concerned for the local community, all the employees," he said.
In February this year, state-owned energy producer Hydro Tasmania confirmed it had locked in a 10-year power deal to supply electricity to the ferroalloy smelter, which accounts for about 7 per cent of the state's energy usage.
Hydro Tasmania's acting chief executive Erin van Maanen at the time said the smelter was "a significant employer in the state" and described the agreement as mutually beneficial.
Only a few weeks later, the South Australian government forced Whyalla steelworks into administration.
At the time, Tasmanian Greens senator Nick McKim said the federal government should "be prepared to step in and "offer similar assistance" to the state-federal package delivered to Whyalla, should Liberty face the same fate.
On Monday, Industry and Innovation Minister Tim Ayres urged Liberty to "provide sufficient support" to keep processing ore, and said he would establish a team within his department to assess the facility's commercial position.
Mr Ayres said he would provide the federal and Tasmanian governments with advice over the coming days.