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Belief in Whyallaâs âknight in shining armourâ wavers
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Sanjeev Gupta rode into the steel town of Whyalla âlike a knight in shining armourâ in 2017 and the gloss is coming off.
But locals say the two big pluses this time around â as the town of 22,000 people in northern South Australia goes through yet another bout of serious uncertainty â are the strong demand for steel and the realisation among governments that sovereign steelmaking capability is crucial.
Neil Skepper: âWeâve kind of been here before and come through it.â Â
Ben Searcy
Neil Skepper, who has lived in Whyalla for 56 years and worked in the laboratory at the Whyalla steelworks for 33 years, says the underlying demand for steel and iron ore is robust.
And there are those who have been here for generations, stoically enduring the endless end-of-times predictions in this Eyre Peninsula town.
This city (population 21,500) is often either a beacon or a canary in the coalmine for manufacturing.
The latest threat to Whyalla is the collapse of the Bundaberg billionaire Lex Greensill’s business. Greensill Capital – which claims 10 million customers – has gone into administration. The company begged for a financial lifeline of more than $300m from the UK government and was left wanting.
And Greensill was financing all sorts of operations around the world, including GFG Alliance, which owns the Whyalla steelworks.