The Australian government has announced a $300 million package to support jobs in Australian steel manufacturing in order to minimize possible negative effects of its newly-unveiled carbon tax.
The ‘Steel Transformation Plan' will be complemented by a small increase in free permit allocation for the steel industry from 2016-17 onwards. Through the Steel Transformation Plan, the government will provide $300 million to encourage investment and innovation in the Australian steel manufacturing industry and minimize the impact of the carbon tax for the first four years.
Meanwhile, Australian steelmaking company BlueScope Steel has announced that it has secured a 60 percent share in the support package with the remaining 40 percent belonging to OneSteel.
The government will monitor the impact of carbon prices on major industries including steelmaking and make recommendations about ongoing carbon pricing arrangements for the industries in question.