Overview
- On Tuesday federal MP Jess Teesdale said Bell Bay Aluminium would not be eligible for the Green Aluminium Production Credit, a claim that contradicts earlier statements by Industry Minister Tim Ayres and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
- Hydro Tasmania says negotiations with Rio Tinto are ongoing and that the power price it has offered is as low as it can responsibly go, while the Tasmanian government says it has put concessional pricing on the table.
- Rio Tinto agreed a one-year extension last year that expires on December 31, 2026, and MPs report the company has set an August deadline in talks that makes the risk of closure very high without a new deal.
- Bell Bay directly employs about 500–600 people and uses roughly a quarter of Tasmania's electricity, so a shutdown would hit local jobs and the finances of a predominantly renewable grid.
- The concern follows the March administration of the nearby Liberty Bell Bay manganese smelter, where administrators said power costs scuppered a sale, and it has prompted sharp state-federal political dispute over who must bridge the funding gap.