GFG Alliance’s Whyalla blast furnace has restarted after being out of action for several weeks

The blast furnace at the Whyalla steelworks has restarted after several weeks out of action, while steelmaking should begin again next month, GFG Alliance boss Sanjeev Gupta says.

The Whyalla blast furnace has restarted operations in a limited fashion after being out of action for several weeks, with steelmaking on track to begin again next month, GFG Alliance executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta said.

Mr Gupta, whose subsidiary company Liberty Primary Metals Australia owns the steelworks and associated iron ore mines, was in Whyalla on the weekend, as the blast furnace began delivering hot metal from its emergency tap hole.

The blast furnace has been out of action since about mid-March, with damage to its shell while trying to bring it back online further delaying the restart of steelmaking.

Mr Gupta said in a statement on Monday there was now hot metal flowing from the emergency tap hole and it was performing “better than expected’’.

“So based on where we are today, we’re looking good,’’ Mr Gupta said.

“We’ll monitor it day by day ... and each day will give us a better idea, but the expectation now is that we will be back to fully normal, i.e. - sending hot metal to the steel plant within June.’’

GFG Alliance executive chairman Sanjeev Gupta.

Mr Gupta and his companies have come in for criticism recently, after news broke that an expected major upgrade to the Whyalla operations - a new electric arc furnace (EAF) to replace the current blast furnace, and an associated direct reduced iron plant - would not be constructed and operational until 2027, two years later than first promised in the case of the EAF.

Mr Gupta said on Monday that that timing was necessary because the new infrastructure needed either natural gas or hydrogen, which would not be available until then.

“We’ve said 2027 because that’s basically ... the new lateral (gas connection) and/or the hydrogen is expected to be completed and that gives us enough time to basically build the DRI and the electric arc furnace together.’’

Mr Gupta has over the past seven years made several promises regarding many billions of dollars worth of investment in Whyalla and South Australia more broadly after he bought the operations out of administration.

Beyond investment in the steelworks itself - which GFG estimates at about $1bn - none of these promises have come to fruition.

SA Energy and Mining Minister Tom Koutsantonis said earlier this month that, “There are no excuses left, it’s time to get on with it’’.

Mr Gupta said on Monday that while the current blast furnace was “a good blast furnace” and could last another 10 years, “the issue is that it loses money’’.

“It’s sub-scale, it’s old technology, it’s difficult to maintain, it difficult to operate in market conditions like now, when you have to vary the production levels,’’ he said.

“So it’s not designed for this sort of situation, and it’s not up to date.’’

Mr Gupta said now was the time to look forward, and “we’re almost there’’.

“It will still be a tough journey, given where the steel markets are globally, and this year certainly has been one of the toughest I’ve seen in history.

“Hopefully next year will look better, but even if it’s not, the commitment will not waver. We will see this through.’’

Mr Gupta said bringing the blast furnace back online was a “slow and precise

exercise’’.

“It could not be rushed, our people’s safety always comes first,’’ Mr Gupta said.

“We are now seeing concrete progress. The furnace’s shell repair is completed and hot metal is flowing from the emergency tap hole,’’ he said.

“This is an important milestone, and I have every confidence our expert team will soon bring our high-quality steel making back to normal production.”

Originally published as GFG Alliance’s Whyalla blast furnace has restarted after being out of action for several weeks