BlueScope Steel, Liberty Steel win combined $200m in government grants
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The news: BlueScope Steel and Liberty Steel Australia have been awarded a total of $200 million in grants from the federal government as part of its Critical Inputs to Clean Energy Industries (CICEI) program to future-proof regional steel manufacturing.
The numbers: BlueScope was awarded $136.8 million, while Liberty was given $63.2 million. The grants are part of the $400 million CICEI program that aims to support hard-to-abate sectors in developing Australia’s clean energy industries.
The context: The funding was part of the first round of the government’s Powering the Regions Fund (PRF). In a statement, the government said the funds will allow BlueScope to maintain domestic production, reduce emissions, and support pathways to producing even lower-emissions steel in the future through the reline and upgrade of its No.6 Blast Furnace. Liberty’s funding will go towards the purchase and commission of a low carbon electric arc furnace to help the firm achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.
What they said: Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen said: “Steel is essential for our energy transformation. Ninety percent of the materials that go into making a wind turbine are steel and cement, and we're going to need a lot more of it”.
“Total steel demand for the energy transformation from 2022 to 2050 will be almost 5 billion tonnes, accounting for 75% of the total material requirement – and that steel will increasingly be green steel.”
BlueScope’s Australian Steel Products CEO Tania Archibald said: “The Port Kembla Steelworks is the sole domestic manufacturer of flat steel products in Australia. The steelworks provides critical inputs needed for Australia to achieve its renewable energy targets such as steel plate for wind towers, hot rolled products for solar structures and electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure”.
The sources: DCCEEW media release, BlueScope Steel media release
