Fears closure of Port Pirie lead smelter will bring town to its knees, forcing locals out

Business owners and families in an iconic regional SA town are on edge as the viability of its century-old producer hangs in the balance.

Frustrated Port Pirie locals fear their town could be brought to its knees if the iconic lead smelter is forced to close after more than 100 years.

Business owners say a review by Nystra’s parent company – Trafigura – into the viability of the Port Pirie smelter could cripple the local economy, forcing young families to relocate in a bid to find work.

It comes after Trafigura chief executive Robert Holtum said there were “no sacred cows” as the Singapore multinational company assessed the future of the Mid North smelter, which employs up to 800 people, along with its zinc smelter in Hobart.

Mr Holtum, who was appointed in January, said the smelters were “uncompetitive assets” that “shouldn’t be in fully private hands”.

The calls for help come just months after the state government sensationally put the embattled Whyalla steelworks into administration, before announcing a $2.4bn rescue package, jointly funded by the federal and state governments.

Port Pirie Smelter worker Gavin Sismey 47, with his wife Sarah, 38, and Rykah, 14, may have to leave town if the smelter closes down. Picture: Emma Brasier

Port Pirie father-of-three Gavin Sismey, who has worked at the smelter for more than 20 years, said the review had cast a shadow of doubt over the tight-knit town.

“As time goes on, prices have just kept rising so they (Nystra) have just been trimming the fat,” Mr Sismey, 47, said.

“There is going to come a day where it all goes downhill.

“If that goes, Pirie would struggle to exist.”

Mr Simsey said nearly half the town’s small businesses would have to shut up shop if the smelter went bust.

“People are just keeping their head above water as is, so it would just be another kick in the guts,” he said.

His wife Sarah feared the decision would have a ripple effect for not only Nystar’s workforce, but the wider local community. .

“It would just be a ghost town, there wouldn’t be any major industries here to prop the town up,” Mrs Sismey, 38, said.

“No one would have any money to spend in the town, therefore all the businesses would be closing, more jobs would be lost.

“It’s a pretty scary thought.”

Despite both being Port Pirie born and bred, the couple admit they would have to look elsewhere for a more reliable future for their three boys – Rykah, 14, Harper, 13, and Paxton, 10.

“I would have to venture west or find some fly-in, fly-out work, but that’s tough when you’ve got a young family,” he said.

“The smelter runs through the whole town, if your husband doesn’t work there, your brother might or your dad or pop has,” she said.

“I don’t know what Pirie would be without it.”

Jenny Smith is a Port Pirie resident and owns The Picture Framer in Bloom. Picture: Emma Brasier

Jenny Smith, who owns the local florist and picture framer, said property owners would struggle to pay their mortgages if there was a mass exodus across the town.

“A lot of young families would have to leave town, as so many people completely rely on the smelter,” Ms Smith said.

“The value of real estate, both commercially and residentially, would just drop completely, which would be devastating.

“You can tell when it’s the smelter’s payday, as all the blokes come in cashed up and ready to spend, so to not have that would be terrible across the board.”

Baker Shamwam, 20, has just opened a barber shop - Trendy Barber - in Port Pirie. Picture: Emma Brasier

Only a couple of doors down, 20-year-old business owner Baker Shanwan is putting the finishing touches on his barbershop, which opened its door only four weeks ago.

He is hopeful the town will survive the strategic review.

“Everyone has been amazing so far, we’ve loved being here,” Mr Shanwan said.

“If it closed, everyone would just have to move to Adelaide.

“Please stay open so we can keep the town going.”

Energy and Mining Minister Tom Koutsantonis said he was in regular contact with Trafigura and Nyrstar, which made very important products at the Port Pirie smelter and supported 1000 jobs

“We’re not in the business of operating lead smelters.But it is important and they are producing important products,” he said.

“I think this is more about an Australian national piece, about whether or not our smelters are under attack, or are viable, because of behaviour coming out of China,” he said.

“I think what you’re seeing here is an international commodity trader saying there seems to be a concerted strategy that is hurting Western smelters.”

Mr Koutsantonis argued “it would be foolish” to link this to the state government plunging Whyalla steelworks into administration to oust Sanjeev Gupta’s GFG as operator.

Originally published as Fears closure of Port Pirie lead smelter will bring town to its knees, forcing locals out