Genuine Optimism for Whyalla’s Future
By City of Whyalla Mayor, Clare McLaughlin
The speculation regarding GFG Alliance’s finances has made global headlines over recent weeks. Despite this, Whyalla continues to focus on what we believe is an exciting future for our city.
We’ve received ongoing reassurances from GFG that their Whyalla operations are in their strongest position in years; they’re progressing well in sourcing alternative funding; and that the current legal action is unsubstantiated.
I was part of a recent briefing by local GFG representatives, and it was extremely encouraging to hear about their record rates of production; strong demand for their product; their profitability; as well as the positive attitude and mindset of their employees despite the external speculation.
It's easy to forget that the Whyalla operations were losing significant amounts of money only 12 months ago. The local team has done an outstanding job to turn things around and they should be extremely proud of their efforts. I know the rest of the city is.
This is all very positive news that should give the community confidence in GFG’s future in our city.
On top of this, there continue to be major developments in Whyalla that add to our excitement. Our new world-class jetty – made using Whyalla Steelworks steel – has garnered global acclaim and is attracting record tourist numbers; the new $100m State Government high school is set for completion later this year; our airport is undergoing a $12.1m, Federally-funded upgrade; we are perfectly positioned for the touted hydrogen plant developments; while Aldi and Electranet are undertaking a total of nearly $300m in major construction projects, creating a rental market boom and rise in median house prices.
All of this is helping create a genuine optimism about Whyalla’s future.
Both the city and GFG’s local operations are in a vastly improved situation from six years ago, so I am confident we will emerge from this period of speculation stronger and ready to capitalise on the exciting opportunities ahead.
