Latest news with #OneSteel
ABC News
2 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
GFG puts Whyalla port company into administration after government intervention
GFG Alliance has placed its subsidiary company which formerly operated the Whyalla port into administration, after the state government intervened in an ownership dispute over the facility. The company, Whyalla Ports Pty Ltd, was embroiled in a Federal Court case launched by Whyalla steelworks administrators KordaMentha, which wants control of the port so it can sell the steelworks as an integrated asset. The state government recently intervened by introducing law changes to "clarify" that the port is owned by OneSteel Manufacturing — the GFG subsidiary that operated the steelworks before being tipped into administration — rather than Whyalla Ports Pty Ltd. In a statement released on Saturday, a GFG Alliance spokesperson said the law change left it with "no option but to place Whyalla Ports Pty Ltd into voluntary administration". The spokesperson added that the company was "confident" the Federal Court case would have been decided in its favour "had the Australian legal system been allowed to determine the matter in the usual way". "Whyalla Ports revenue has been severely impacted by the actions of the South Australian Government," the spokesperson said. "Whyalla Ports Pty Ltd is unable to engage in any commercial activity after the termination of its lease and the seizure of assets by the South Australian Government at the request of the Administrators. "These actions have resulted in a complete stop in all revenue streams and therefore no ability to pay creditors." KordaMentha has continued to operate the port throughout the ownership dispute, while the state government said GFG's decision has no impact on the facility's operation. "The port continues to operate as usual," a state government spokesperson said. "The voluntary administration of any GFG operation is a matter for GFG." GFG claims that the administrators of the steelworks have "continued to use Whyalla Ports Pty infrastructure on land leased by Whyalla Ports without effecting payment for use of the land or infrastructure worth millions of dollars". But the state government claims that ministerial consent was required to lease the port and "this consent was neither sought nor granted". "The Government had complete confidence in the legal action undertaken by KordaMentha, however the legislative changes clarify the consequence of failure to gain consent and will ensure similar action will not be necessary in future," the government spokesperson said. KordaMentha sought to withdraw its legal claim against Whyalla Ports at a Federal Court hearing on Tuesday, saying the government's law changes had achieved what they were seeking. But the court also heard a cross-claim by the defendant, Whyalla Ports, would continue, with their lawyers telling the court there is still a dispute over the ownership of some assets. The matter is expected to go to trial in August. GFG said on Saturday that its decision to appoint administrators for Whyalla Ports will have "no operational impact on the rest of GFG Alliance".
The Advertiser
5 days ago
- Business
- The Advertiser
Steelworks sale on track despite hit on state budget
The sale of an embattled steelworks is progressing better than the state government had hoped, despite the toll on the budget of propping up the business. In the wake of the South Australian budget being handed down and the state being forced to absorb costs in keeping the Whyalla steelworks alive, Premier Peter Malinauskas is positive about the sale of the company. "We're actively engaged already with potential buyers for the steelworks," he told ABC Radio National on Friday. "In fact, that's going a little bit better than we had even hoped." In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. Since then, the SA government had ruled out taking an equity stake in the troubled steelworks but Mr Malinauskas said the federal government has not done the same. The federal government is "open-minded" to an equity stake and the state government will work in conjunction with them, Mr Malinauskas said. Supporting the administration of the Whyalla steelworks has taken a big hit on the state budget handed down on Thursday, with next year's surplus revised down from $449 million to $179 million. Mr Malinauskas said that it is partly the result of the state having to fund the administration 50-50 with the federal government until a buyer is found. "We're committed to sovereign steelmaking in this country and willing to bear the brunt of that hit," he said. The budget allocated $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government in February. Treasurer Stephen Mullighan's state budget offered few sweeteners to residents, instead headlining with a $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. The centrepiece was not welcomed by the opposition who said the government, which is facing an election in March, is "out of money and out of ideas". The budget also featured $73 million in already announced drought relief to relieve the escalating impact of near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. Mr Malinauskas has not ruled out further drought assistance if the conditions continue despite the pressure on the budget. "We're going to wait and see how the conditions unfold," he said. "There's a bit of (rain) forecast this weekend, we hope it buckets down, but if it doesn't, the government will continue to engage with our farming community." The sale of an embattled steelworks is progressing better than the state government had hoped, despite the toll on the budget of propping up the business. In the wake of the South Australian budget being handed down and the state being forced to absorb costs in keeping the Whyalla steelworks alive, Premier Peter Malinauskas is positive about the sale of the company. "We're actively engaged already with potential buyers for the steelworks," he told ABC Radio National on Friday. "In fact, that's going a little bit better than we had even hoped." In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. Since then, the SA government had ruled out taking an equity stake in the troubled steelworks but Mr Malinauskas said the federal government has not done the same. The federal government is "open-minded" to an equity stake and the state government will work in conjunction with them, Mr Malinauskas said. Supporting the administration of the Whyalla steelworks has taken a big hit on the state budget handed down on Thursday, with next year's surplus revised down from $449 million to $179 million. Mr Malinauskas said that it is partly the result of the state having to fund the administration 50-50 with the federal government until a buyer is found. "We're committed to sovereign steelmaking in this country and willing to bear the brunt of that hit," he said. The budget allocated $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government in February. Treasurer Stephen Mullighan's state budget offered few sweeteners to residents, instead headlining with a $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. The centrepiece was not welcomed by the opposition who said the government, which is facing an election in March, is "out of money and out of ideas". The budget also featured $73 million in already announced drought relief to relieve the escalating impact of near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. Mr Malinauskas has not ruled out further drought assistance if the conditions continue despite the pressure on the budget. "We're going to wait and see how the conditions unfold," he said. "There's a bit of (rain) forecast this weekend, we hope it buckets down, but if it doesn't, the government will continue to engage with our farming community." The sale of an embattled steelworks is progressing better than the state government had hoped, despite the toll on the budget of propping up the business. In the wake of the South Australian budget being handed down and the state being forced to absorb costs in keeping the Whyalla steelworks alive, Premier Peter Malinauskas is positive about the sale of the company. "We're actively engaged already with potential buyers for the steelworks," he told ABC Radio National on Friday. "In fact, that's going a little bit better than we had even hoped." In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. Since then, the SA government had ruled out taking an equity stake in the troubled steelworks but Mr Malinauskas said the federal government has not done the same. The federal government is "open-minded" to an equity stake and the state government will work in conjunction with them, Mr Malinauskas said. Supporting the administration of the Whyalla steelworks has taken a big hit on the state budget handed down on Thursday, with next year's surplus revised down from $449 million to $179 million. Mr Malinauskas said that it is partly the result of the state having to fund the administration 50-50 with the federal government until a buyer is found. "We're committed to sovereign steelmaking in this country and willing to bear the brunt of that hit," he said. The budget allocated $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government in February. Treasurer Stephen Mullighan's state budget offered few sweeteners to residents, instead headlining with a $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. The centrepiece was not welcomed by the opposition who said the government, which is facing an election in March, is "out of money and out of ideas". The budget also featured $73 million in already announced drought relief to relieve the escalating impact of near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. Mr Malinauskas has not ruled out further drought assistance if the conditions continue despite the pressure on the budget. "We're going to wait and see how the conditions unfold," he said. "There's a bit of (rain) forecast this weekend, we hope it buckets down, but if it doesn't, the government will continue to engage with our farming community." The sale of an embattled steelworks is progressing better than the state government had hoped, despite the toll on the budget of propping up the business. In the wake of the South Australian budget being handed down and the state being forced to absorb costs in keeping the Whyalla steelworks alive, Premier Peter Malinauskas is positive about the sale of the company. "We're actively engaged already with potential buyers for the steelworks," he told ABC Radio National on Friday. "In fact, that's going a little bit better than we had even hoped." In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. Since then, the SA government had ruled out taking an equity stake in the troubled steelworks but Mr Malinauskas said the federal government has not done the same. The federal government is "open-minded" to an equity stake and the state government will work in conjunction with them, Mr Malinauskas said. Supporting the administration of the Whyalla steelworks has taken a big hit on the state budget handed down on Thursday, with next year's surplus revised down from $449 million to $179 million. Mr Malinauskas said that it is partly the result of the state having to fund the administration 50-50 with the federal government until a buyer is found. "We're committed to sovereign steelmaking in this country and willing to bear the brunt of that hit," he said. The budget allocated $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government in February. Treasurer Stephen Mullighan's state budget offered few sweeteners to residents, instead headlining with a $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. The centrepiece was not welcomed by the opposition who said the government, which is facing an election in March, is "out of money and out of ideas". The budget also featured $73 million in already announced drought relief to relieve the escalating impact of near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. Mr Malinauskas has not ruled out further drought assistance if the conditions continue despite the pressure on the budget. "We're going to wait and see how the conditions unfold," he said. "There's a bit of (rain) forecast this weekend, we hope it buckets down, but if it doesn't, the government will continue to engage with our farming community."
West Australian
5 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
Steelworks sale on track despite hit on state budget
The sale of an embattled steelworks is progressing better than the state government had hoped, despite the toll on the budget of propping up the business. In the wake of the South Australian budget being handed down and the state being forced to absorb costs in keeping the Whyalla steelworks alive, Premier Peter Malinauskas is positive about the sale of the company. "We're actively engaged already with potential buyers for the steelworks," he told ABC Radio National on Friday. "In fact, that's going a little bit better than we had even hoped." In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. Since then, the SA government had ruled out taking an equity stake in the troubled steelworks but Mr Malinauskas said the federal government has not done the same. The federal government is "open-minded" to an equity stake and the state government will work in conjunction with them, Mr Malinauskas said. Supporting the administration of the Whyalla steelworks has taken a big hit on the state budget handed down on Thursday, with next year's surplus revised down from $449 million to $179 million. Mr Malinauskas said that it is partly the result of the state having to fund the administration 50-50 with the federal government until a buyer is found. "We're committed to sovereign steelmaking in this country and willing to bear the brunt of that hit," he said. The budget allocated $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government in February. Treasurer Stephen Mullighan's state budget offered few sweeteners to residents, instead headlining with a $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. The centrepiece was not welcomed by the opposition who said the government, which is facing an election in March, is "out of money and out of ideas". The budget also featured $73 million in already announced drought relief to relieve the escalating impact of near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. Mr Malinauskas has not ruled out further drought assistance if the conditions continue despite the pressure on the budget. "We're going to wait and see how the conditions unfold," he said. "There's a bit of (rain) forecast this weekend, we hope it buckets down, but if it doesn't, the government will continue to engage with our farming community."
Perth Now
5 days ago
- Business
- Perth Now
Steelworks sale on track despite hit on state budget
The sale of an embattled steelworks is progressing better than the state government had hoped, despite the toll on the budget of propping up the business. In the wake of the South Australian budget being handed down and the state being forced to absorb costs in keeping the Whyalla steelworks alive, Premier Peter Malinauskas is positive about the sale of the company. "We're actively engaged already with potential buyers for the steelworks," he told ABC Radio National on Friday. "In fact, that's going a little bit better than we had even hoped." In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. Since then, the SA government had ruled out taking an equity stake in the troubled steelworks but Mr Malinauskas said the federal government has not done the same. The federal government is "open-minded" to an equity stake and the state government will work in conjunction with them, Mr Malinauskas said. Supporting the administration of the Whyalla steelworks has taken a big hit on the state budget handed down on Thursday, with next year's surplus revised down from $449 million to $179 million. Mr Malinauskas said that it is partly the result of the state having to fund the administration 50-50 with the federal government until a buyer is found. "We're committed to sovereign steelmaking in this country and willing to bear the brunt of that hit," he said. The budget allocated $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government in February. Treasurer Stephen Mullighan's state budget offered few sweeteners to residents, instead headlining with a $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. The centrepiece was not welcomed by the opposition who said the government, which is facing an election in March, is "out of money and out of ideas". The budget also featured $73 million in already announced drought relief to relieve the escalating impact of near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. Mr Malinauskas has not ruled out further drought assistance if the conditions continue despite the pressure on the budget. "We're going to wait and see how the conditions unfold," he said. "There's a bit of (rain) forecast this weekend, we hope it buckets down, but if it doesn't, the government will continue to engage with our farming community."
The Advertiser
5 days ago
- Business
- The Advertiser
Voters forgo sugar-hit as law and order tops budget
A $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers headlines a state budget forced to absorb the impact of a troubled steelworks and an escalating drought. Delivering his fourth state budget on Thursday, South Australian Treasurer Stephen Mullighan had little to offer in the way of sweeteners before the state election in March. The state is already committed to big-ticket road and hospital projects and has had to prop up the Whyalla steelworks and respond to a drought crisis. Framing his budget as strategic investment balanced with fiscal discipline, Mr Mullighan said it provided the biggest boost to police funding in the state's history. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. "We are providing SA police the funding for more personnel, better facilities and new equipment, so they are better resourced," he said. But Opposition Leader Vincent Tarzia said the government was not able to fill police vacancies, let alone recruit hundreds more. The budget showed Labor was "out of money and out of ideas", he said. "The budget has no new plan to solve the housing crisis, no plan to bring down power bills and no plan to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis," he said. Mr Mullighan said there were no new or increased taxes and "our economy has gone from laggard to leader" since being elected in 2022. "We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state's history, we are ranked the best place in the nation to do business, we have the best-performing housing market and are the lowest taxing state on the mainland," he said. The mid-year budget review in December had predicted a surplus of $201 million, but this has shrunk to $18 million because of the Whyalla package and drought funding. The budget allocates $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government, as the administrator stabilises the steelworks and prepares it for sale. In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. "South Australians will not be taken for fools by fast-talking businessmen that continually break their promises to our state," Mr Mullighan said, referencing GFG chairman, UK billionaire Sanjeev Gupta. The $73 million for drought relief had already been announced and there was no new money to relieve the escalating impact of record and near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. The economy was predicted to grow by 1.25 per cent in 2024/25, rising to 1.75 in 2025/26 and 2.0 per cent in 2026/27. The state's AA+ credit rating remains stable and SA had the best credit outlook of all states except Western Australia. "This is what gives us the confidence to borrow, to invest in the infrastructure that's going to benefit future generations," Mr Mullighan said. Debt will increase to fund projects such as the new Women's and Children's Hospital and the north-south corridor's South Rd tunnel and net debt will grow over the forward estimates to $48.5 billion by 2028/29. Mr Tarzia described that figure as a "debt iceberg" that would cost almost $7 million a day in interest. But Mr Mullighan said the government would have more capacity to tackle debt once infrastructure projects were built. Premier Peter Malinauskas said the government was absorbing the cost of drought relief and the steelworks bailout while delivering record investments in infrastructure, health and housing. Shadow treasurer Sam Telfer said that was "quite frankly insulting when government departments have blown their budgets by a combined $1.6 billion". SOUTH AUSTRALIA'S BUDGET 2025/26: * Surplus: $179 million * Revenue: $31.369 billion * Expenditure: $31.190 billion * Net debt: $35.539 billion * GST revenue: $9.529 billion * Unemployment rate: 3.9 per cent (current) * Five biggest spending areas: health ($9.91 billion), education ($4.622 billion), infrastructure and transport ($1.965 billion), police ($1.269 billion), child protection ($877 million). A $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers headlines a state budget forced to absorb the impact of a troubled steelworks and an escalating drought. Delivering his fourth state budget on Thursday, South Australian Treasurer Stephen Mullighan had little to offer in the way of sweeteners before the state election in March. The state is already committed to big-ticket road and hospital projects and has had to prop up the Whyalla steelworks and respond to a drought crisis. Framing his budget as strategic investment balanced with fiscal discipline, Mr Mullighan said it provided the biggest boost to police funding in the state's history. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. "We are providing SA police the funding for more personnel, better facilities and new equipment, so they are better resourced," he said. But Opposition Leader Vincent Tarzia said the government was not able to fill police vacancies, let alone recruit hundreds more. The budget showed Labor was "out of money and out of ideas", he said. "The budget has no new plan to solve the housing crisis, no plan to bring down power bills and no plan to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis," he said. Mr Mullighan said there were no new or increased taxes and "our economy has gone from laggard to leader" since being elected in 2022. "We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state's history, we are ranked the best place in the nation to do business, we have the best-performing housing market and are the lowest taxing state on the mainland," he said. The mid-year budget review in December had predicted a surplus of $201 million, but this has shrunk to $18 million because of the Whyalla package and drought funding. The budget allocates $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government, as the administrator stabilises the steelworks and prepares it for sale. In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. "South Australians will not be taken for fools by fast-talking businessmen that continually break their promises to our state," Mr Mullighan said, referencing GFG chairman, UK billionaire Sanjeev Gupta. The $73 million for drought relief had already been announced and there was no new money to relieve the escalating impact of record and near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. The economy was predicted to grow by 1.25 per cent in 2024/25, rising to 1.75 in 2025/26 and 2.0 per cent in 2026/27. The state's AA+ credit rating remains stable and SA had the best credit outlook of all states except Western Australia. "This is what gives us the confidence to borrow, to invest in the infrastructure that's going to benefit future generations," Mr Mullighan said. Debt will increase to fund projects such as the new Women's and Children's Hospital and the north-south corridor's South Rd tunnel and net debt will grow over the forward estimates to $48.5 billion by 2028/29. Mr Tarzia described that figure as a "debt iceberg" that would cost almost $7 million a day in interest. But Mr Mullighan said the government would have more capacity to tackle debt once infrastructure projects were built. Premier Peter Malinauskas said the government was absorbing the cost of drought relief and the steelworks bailout while delivering record investments in infrastructure, health and housing. Shadow treasurer Sam Telfer said that was "quite frankly insulting when government departments have blown their budgets by a combined $1.6 billion". SOUTH AUSTRALIA'S BUDGET 2025/26: * Surplus: $179 million * Revenue: $31.369 billion * Expenditure: $31.190 billion * Net debt: $35.539 billion * GST revenue: $9.529 billion * Unemployment rate: 3.9 per cent (current) * Five biggest spending areas: health ($9.91 billion), education ($4.622 billion), infrastructure and transport ($1.965 billion), police ($1.269 billion), child protection ($877 million). A $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers headlines a state budget forced to absorb the impact of a troubled steelworks and an escalating drought. Delivering his fourth state budget on Thursday, South Australian Treasurer Stephen Mullighan had little to offer in the way of sweeteners before the state election in March. The state is already committed to big-ticket road and hospital projects and has had to prop up the Whyalla steelworks and respond to a drought crisis. Framing his budget as strategic investment balanced with fiscal discipline, Mr Mullighan said it provided the biggest boost to police funding in the state's history. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. "We are providing SA police the funding for more personnel, better facilities and new equipment, so they are better resourced," he said. But Opposition Leader Vincent Tarzia said the government was not able to fill police vacancies, let alone recruit hundreds more. The budget showed Labor was "out of money and out of ideas", he said. "The budget has no new plan to solve the housing crisis, no plan to bring down power bills and no plan to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis," he said. Mr Mullighan said there were no new or increased taxes and "our economy has gone from laggard to leader" since being elected in 2022. "We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state's history, we are ranked the best place in the nation to do business, we have the best-performing housing market and are the lowest taxing state on the mainland," he said. The mid-year budget review in December had predicted a surplus of $201 million, but this has shrunk to $18 million because of the Whyalla package and drought funding. The budget allocates $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government, as the administrator stabilises the steelworks and prepares it for sale. In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. "South Australians will not be taken for fools by fast-talking businessmen that continually break their promises to our state," Mr Mullighan said, referencing GFG chairman, UK billionaire Sanjeev Gupta. The $73 million for drought relief had already been announced and there was no new money to relieve the escalating impact of record and near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. The economy was predicted to grow by 1.25 per cent in 2024/25, rising to 1.75 in 2025/26 and 2.0 per cent in 2026/27. The state's AA+ credit rating remains stable and SA had the best credit outlook of all states except Western Australia. "This is what gives us the confidence to borrow, to invest in the infrastructure that's going to benefit future generations," Mr Mullighan said. Debt will increase to fund projects such as the new Women's and Children's Hospital and the north-south corridor's South Rd tunnel and net debt will grow over the forward estimates to $48.5 billion by 2028/29. Mr Tarzia described that figure as a "debt iceberg" that would cost almost $7 million a day in interest. But Mr Mullighan said the government would have more capacity to tackle debt once infrastructure projects were built. Premier Peter Malinauskas said the government was absorbing the cost of drought relief and the steelworks bailout while delivering record investments in infrastructure, health and housing. Shadow treasurer Sam Telfer said that was "quite frankly insulting when government departments have blown their budgets by a combined $1.6 billion". SOUTH AUSTRALIA'S BUDGET 2025/26: * Surplus: $179 million * Revenue: $31.369 billion * Expenditure: $31.190 billion * Net debt: $35.539 billion * GST revenue: $9.529 billion * Unemployment rate: 3.9 per cent (current) * Five biggest spending areas: health ($9.91 billion), education ($4.622 billion), infrastructure and transport ($1.965 billion), police ($1.269 billion), child protection ($877 million). A $395 million "law and order" package to fund hundreds of extra police officers headlines a state budget forced to absorb the impact of a troubled steelworks and an escalating drought. Delivering his fourth state budget on Thursday, South Australian Treasurer Stephen Mullighan had little to offer in the way of sweeteners before the state election in March. The state is already committed to big-ticket road and hospital projects and has had to prop up the Whyalla steelworks and respond to a drought crisis. Framing his budget as strategic investment balanced with fiscal discipline, Mr Mullighan said it provided the biggest boost to police funding in the state's history. The law and order package includes $172 million across six years to recruit 326 officers, lifting numbers to 5000 by 2030/31. More police security officers, civilianisation of administrative roles, and recruiting will deliver 630 extra police officers in frontline roles by 2031. "We are providing SA police the funding for more personnel, better facilities and new equipment, so they are better resourced," he said. But Opposition Leader Vincent Tarzia said the government was not able to fill police vacancies, let alone recruit hundreds more. The budget showed Labor was "out of money and out of ideas", he said. "The budget has no new plan to solve the housing crisis, no plan to bring down power bills and no plan to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis," he said. Mr Mullighan said there were no new or increased taxes and "our economy has gone from laggard to leader" since being elected in 2022. "We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state's history, we are ranked the best place in the nation to do business, we have the best-performing housing market and are the lowest taxing state on the mainland," he said. The mid-year budget review in December had predicted a surplus of $201 million, but this has shrunk to $18 million because of the Whyalla package and drought funding. The budget allocates $650 million towards the $2.4 billion Whyalla "sovereign steel" package announced jointly with the federal government, as the administrator stabilises the steelworks and prepares it for sale. In February, the state government took dramatic action in Whyalla, rushing through legislation so it could place the city's steelworks into the hands of administrators KordaMentha because of the mounting debts of OneSteel's owners, GFG Alliance. "South Australians will not be taken for fools by fast-talking businessmen that continually break their promises to our state," Mr Mullighan said, referencing GFG chairman, UK billionaire Sanjeev Gupta. The $73 million for drought relief had already been announced and there was no new money to relieve the escalating impact of record and near-record low rainfall across most of SA's farming regions in recent years. The economy was predicted to grow by 1.25 per cent in 2024/25, rising to 1.75 in 2025/26 and 2.0 per cent in 2026/27. The state's AA+ credit rating remains stable and SA had the best credit outlook of all states except Western Australia. "This is what gives us the confidence to borrow, to invest in the infrastructure that's going to benefit future generations," Mr Mullighan said. Debt will increase to fund projects such as the new Women's and Children's Hospital and the north-south corridor's South Rd tunnel and net debt will grow over the forward estimates to $48.5 billion by 2028/29. Mr Tarzia described that figure as a "debt iceberg" that would cost almost $7 million a day in interest. But Mr Mullighan said the government would have more capacity to tackle debt once infrastructure projects were built. Premier Peter Malinauskas said the government was absorbing the cost of drought relief and the steelworks bailout while delivering record investments in infrastructure, health and housing. Shadow treasurer Sam Telfer said that was "quite frankly insulting when government departments have blown their budgets by a combined $1.6 billion". SOUTH AUSTRALIA'S BUDGET 2025/26: * Surplus: $179 million * Revenue: $31.369 billion * Expenditure: $31.190 billion * Net debt: $35.539 billion * GST revenue: $9.529 billion * Unemployment rate: 3.9 per cent (current) * Five biggest spending areas: health ($9.91 billion), education ($4.622 billion), infrastructure and transport ($1.965 billion), police ($1.269 billion), child protection ($877 million).
