Posted on 11 Jun 2024
The New South Wales (NSW) government said in a media release last Friday that BlueScope's plate mill refurbishment project has received planning approval.
This will increase the mill's capacity from the current 430,000 tonnes/year to 600,000 t/y at the Port Kembla site, Kallanish notes. It is expected to bring a direct economic stimulus of AUD 650 million ($428m) to NSW and to create 95 full-time construction jobs during peak construction periods and an additional 18 operational jobs.
The refurbishment project will involve replacing two of the existing furnaces with a newer and more energy efficient alternative, upgrading infrastructure and modernizing processing plant equipment to reduce environmental impacts from its operations such as a large reduction in fuel consumption, according to NSW officials.
The construction work is expected to commence in July 2024 and will take three years to complete.
Earlier this year, BlueScope said it has been granted AUD 136.8m to support its Port Kembla steelworks. The funds will go towards the capital cost of relining and upgrading blast furnace No. 6 with capacity of 2.1m t/y. The BF is expected to be commissioned in mid to late 2026.
Source:Kallanish
