Blast Furnace 6 Reline

I consider the project to be very important for the future of the Australian steel making industry. The project itself and the ongoing iron making capability it provides will contribute to both short and long term economic security for the local region, with flow-on benefits for a large number of local businesses. The environmental improvement upgrades are a positive step towards a greener future for steel making.

I think this project is integral to the economy and sustainability in the Illawarra. BlueScope is making a lot of improvements environmentally within this project, but it is a pathway to maintain the operations and economic stability for so many people employed directly and indirectly, whilst they move to an ever greener future for steelmaking.

As a resident of the NSW South Coast for 14 years and an employee of BlueScope for almost 6 years, I have witnessed first hand the enormous positive impact that BlueScope and its employees have on the region, both economically and culturally.
The project is vital to secure the capacity of not just BlueScope, but Australia, to produce its own steel for the Australian economy and possibly for export over a period of around 25 years. If the project does not go ahead, the business will lose its capacity to make steel, making the remaining part of the BlueScope business reliant on the importing of steel. Given our recent experiences with supply chain disruption during the pandemic, being reliant on imports cannot be acceptable.
The project will support up to 10,000 direct and indirect jobs, now and into the future. There will be around 250 new jobs created during construction. The project will allow for more than $100 million of environmental improvement upgrades.
As a result I urge that the project be approved.

The reline is required to keep a key piece of infrastructure, steel manufacturing, running.

It is in all Australian's interest to sustain and grow Australia's manufacturing industry to decrease single point reliance in imported goods. Australia is positioned well to take advantage of local mineral deposits for efficient transport and manufacture of goods. I see domestic manufacture of iron and steel as critical both economically (keep flow of money and investment within Australia) and for Australia's built environment impact (longer lasting products with better environmental credentials). BlueScope has an intimate understanding of the Australian environment, market needs, standards and codes, and growth trajectory. BlueScope's products better meet the current and future needs of Australia and have the best chance of minimising environmental impact whilst maximising economic returns for Australia (employment, taxes, research and development, investment, collaboration). Greener ironmaking technologies are not currently feasible and Electric Arc steelmaking is not sustainable in a global sense.
I strongly support the reline of blast furnace 6 to enable both continued domestic iron and steel making and investment in the development of next generation greener iron and steel making technologies.

Bluescope Steel is a Major Employer in the Illawarra and they are making a committed effort to reducing their Carbon Footprint, particularly on this project by introducing Waste Gas heat Recovery and Top Gas Recovery Turbine technologies, as well as provision for future Hydrogen use in the Blast Furnace Iron making process. I think this will be great for the future of steelmaking in Australia.

I am in favor of this project of a number of reasons including:
- The significant number of jobs that the Port Kembla Steel Works facilitates both directly and indirectly in the region.
- Without an ironmaking facility, the entire steelworks will cease to operate, heavily impacting the supply of metal sheet and plate industrial and building products Australia wide, increasing reliance on imported steel products.
- The blast furnace reline and associated carbon reduction technology upgrades proposed represents the best intermediary solution for reliable iron production at the required rate whist emerging "green steel" technologies and other more sustainable methods of steel and iron production are developed and refined to an economical stage.

As a BlueScope employee, I'm very much in support of this project. It is well considered, and a very necessary bridge to future steelmaking configurations.
BlueScope is a leading manufacturer in Australia, and offers regional employment to many people both directly and indirectly - and this project is a foundation for this continuing. The reline project is also critical to Australia's ongoing sovereign capability in the production of flat steel products for a broad range of applications - including construction, defence and renewable energy.
I note the effort that BlueScope has made in integrating GHG emissions reduction, and broader environmental measures, as part of the project scope.

The project enables the continuation of the steelworks while new, lower emission technologies are developed. If the project is not successful, steelmaking in Port Kembla will come to an end. Domestic manufacturing should be encouraged and promoted. Should the project be rejected, the livelihood of ~4,500 people will be directly affected. There are environmental improvements designed into the project that will result in reduced impact from the steelworks compared to existing operations.

This project will be a significant boost to the local economy and the security of jobs in the Illawarra. The substantial environmental upgrades will incorporate new technologies for a sustainable environment into the future.

The Number 6 Blast Furnace reline project supports 10,000 direct and indirect jobs in Wollongong using local contractors and suppliers. There will be upwards of 250 new jobs created during construction and the project is a $1 billion total project investment for BlueScope. The project will be completed in 3 years (by 2026) and BlueScope will spend over $100m in environmental improvement upgrades to prepare the business for green steelmaking in the future. This is an exciting and critical project for the Illawarra region.

The Number 6 Blast Furnace reline project supports 10,000 direct and indirect jobs in Wollongong using local contractors and suppliers. There will be upwards of 250 new jobs created during construction and the project is a $1 billion total project investment for BlueScope. The project will be completed in 3 years (by 2026) and BlueScope will spend over $100m in environmental improvement upgrades to prepare the business for green steelmaking in the future. This is an exciting and critical project for the Illawarra region.

I strongly support BlueScope's 6BF Reline project at the Port Kembla Steelworks.

BlueScope's Port Kembla Steelworks provides a significant level of employment for the Illawarra region and the steel it supplies into the Australian market has strategic importance in ensuring Australia has sufficient domestic steel production. The viability of the Port Kembla Steelworks relies on the success of the 6BF Reline Project and it is therefore essential that the 6BF Reline project is approved by the Government.

I support the project as it allows the illawarra to continue to function comfortably economically as Bluescope steelworks employs thousands of people from all around including people from Sydney. This project also allows the production of steel to remain in the illawarra and gives the steel production of Australia a boost and allows us to continue to export internationally. Not continuing this project would be detrimental to the economy and would not be in favour of trying to keep production within Australia, it is a part of our history now, we can't give up on it.

There are further environmental projects occurring alongside the reline which allows us to reduce the carbon output of the furnace thus creating a more climate friendly plant. The push for green steel is well heard and this reline allows BSL to focus on implementing hydrogen steel furnaces to the appropriate scale in the future.

I believe that the project is essential to the ongoing economic prospects of the Illawarra region and to maintaining ongoing manufacturing facilities in Australia.

I support the project for the short and long term jobs created by the 6BF reline project for the local community of the Illawarra region.

I support the project

As a long time employee of AIS, then BHP and then Bluescope, I have seen Wollongong grow as a clean steel city. Steel is a commodity that Australia needs to continue to independently produce. Although new technologies are emerging for steel production these technologies are immature and still being honed. Steel production in Australia is small on the world scale and as such, although we are very innovative, we would be silly to launch into relatively unknown technologies and processes. No. 6 last Furnace being relined and being ready to continue iron production instead of the aging No 5 Blast Furnace is a sound strategy for continued Steel Production in Australia.
The additional 20 years of Blast Furnace iron production will give alternative technologies time to mature and Bluescope time to develop our plant to accept the new infrastructure required to make iron using these new technologies.
The value this has for the Wollongong Region is obvious. Jobs not only for those in the actual steel industry. but without 6BF going ahead. Australian Steel will be history and we as a country will be at the mercy of internationals

The Blast Furnace 6 Reline project will maintain the strong steel industry, and its associated jobs, in Wollongong for the future. We need to embrace manufacturing in Australia, and this is a project that is ensuring it stays here.

The reline of No.6 Blast Furnace is critical to maintaining the sovereign manufacturing capability of steelmaking in Australia and supply to the domestic market for vital use in infrastructure, building and construction, defence and renewables projects.
Other project benefits include:
• $1 Billion investment by BlueScope in the Illawarra region and state
• Ongoing support of 10,000 direct and indirect jobs during operation, plus an additional 250 jobs during the Project’s development and construction phases
• Significant economic contribution to the Illawarra region of $1.6 billion in Gross Regional Product (11%) and $6.5 billion of the regions total Output (Value Added)
• A commitment to ensuring environmentally sustainable steelmaking with over $100 million to be spent on environmental improvement upgrades
• Securing the short-medium term future of steelmaking at Port Kembla whilst providing a bridge to the longer-term transition to lower emissions steelmaking technologies when it is technically and commercially viable
• Maximum local participation throughout the development and construction phases, outsourcing contractors and suppliers from the Illawarra region