Latest news with #shutdown
ABC News
10-06-2025
- Business
- ABC News
GFG Alliance workers across Australia face an uncertain future as Sanjeev Gupta's financial woes worsen
Months after British industrialist Sanjeev Gupta was effectively stripped of ownership of his South Australian steelworks, hundreds of workers at his New South Wales coal mine remain stood down, and those at his Tasmanian smelter are about to be. The uncertainty is causing anger and frustration. "The future looks grim," said Jimmy Baker, who has worked at the Tahmoor coal mine in NSW for the past 20 years. "I hope we're back and cutting coal in no time at all. But the longer it drags on, that looks grimmer and grimmer." Mr Baker is one of 560 workers affected by the indefinite shutdown. While workers have been stood down with pay since February, he says he's feeling the financial strain after having to forego hundreds of dollars in bonuses. "People think we're sitting at home [and] we're rich … [but] we're on basic pay," he told 7.30. "By the time I pay the mortgage, child support, you're down to $60 some weeks. The prolonged shutdown has also taken a significant toll on Mr Baker's mental health. "My biggest fear going forward is being 52 and jobless ... what company is going to hire a 52-year-old?" he said. "I find myself walking around the house or walking inside to outside. There are days where I really do struggle." Sanjeev Gupta is struggling to keep his global empire afloat amid poor economic conditions and the collapse of his major financier, Greensill Capital, in 2021. His credibility has also taken a massive hit. In February, the South Australian government took the extraordinary step of placing Mr Gupta's Whyalla steelworks into administration because bills weren't being paid. Trade and other creditors were found to be owed more than $1 billion. The South Australian and federal governments have pledged $2.4 billion to help secure the steelworks' future. Bob Timbs from the NSW Mining and Energy Union told 7.30 the Tahmoor mine shutdown was only meant to last weeks, not months. "We were of the understanding that it was only going to take a couple of weeks for them to realise the further capital investment from prospective investors and that never occurred," Mr Timbs said. Mr Timbs said government intervention was needed. "The coal produced at Tahmoor is a high-grade coal used for steel production," he said. "It's widely used in Port Kembla and for export and it's completely necessary for us to have the likes of washing machines, clothes dryers, cars; anything that's made out of steel is made with coal. "We need to get it operating again. For that reason, I call on the state government to intervene and arrange a tripartite meeting between Mr Gupta, the department and myself and other stakeholders to clearly explain when he's going to start that operation back up." The NSW government is owed royalty payments and the mine is in arrears with its water bills, a similar situation to what was faced by the SA government. In a statement, NSW Natural Resources Minister Courtney Houssos said she had been monitoring the situation at Tahmoor closely and that it was in "everyone's best interests for GFG to quickly resolve their financing" and end the uncertainty. 7.30 understands Ms Houssos has written to Mr Gupta demanding to know the progress of refinancing and when the mine will reopen, after a previous assurance that operations would restart by May 24 wasn't met. A spokesperson for GFG Alliance said it was working hard to secure the "funding required for a resumption of normal operations at Tahmoor Colliery". It said the "complex process has taken longer than expected" but it would "continue to work towards finalisation of this funding" and was hopeful it would be completed soon. In Tasmania, Mr Gupta's Liberty Bell Bay manganese smelter will stop operations for at least four weeks from the middle of this month. Most of the 250 workers there won't be required and are expected to use their leave entitlements. The company is largely blaming ore supply challenges after a cyclone affected its main supplier, South32 GEMCO, in the Northern Territory last year. Ore shipments have since resumed. Independent MP Andrew Wilkie told 7.30 he was very concerned another of Mr Gupta's operations was facing problems. "So why isn't (GEMCO) shipping ore out to Tasmania, or — and I just floated this as a genuine question — is there doubt in the mine owner's mind about the future capacity of Liberty Bell Bay or GFG Alliance more broadly to pay its bills for that ore?" Mr Wilkie told 7.30. GFG's statement said Liberty Bell Bay had made a "declaration for ore with South 32 GEMCO for the remaining six months of the year" and was "now working through the contractual process". "We are continuing to work closely with the federal and Tasmanian governments through a joint taskforce as we deal with the residual impact of inventory and market challenges over the last several months," the statement said. Andrew Taylor worked at the manganese smelter for 43 years before retiring 18 months ago. He's worried about his former colleagues. "They're salt of the earth people. It's not right," Mr Taylor told 7.30. He said people were nervous given what they'd seen happen at Whyalla and Tahmoor. "It is extremely stressful for people in the community, extremely stressful." University of Sydney corporate law and insolvency professor Jason Harris told 7.30 that since the collapse of Greensill Capital, Mr Gupta's GFG Alliance has faced increasing difficulty securing finance. "He's having to turn to second, third and fourth tier lenders," Professor Harris said. The UK's Serious Fraud Office is investigating the relationship between GFG Alliance and Greensill Capital over suspicions of fraud, fraudulent trading and money laundering. GFG Alliance has denied any wrongdoing. "One of the features of Mr Gupta's global empire is that it is very opaque ... so lots of companies that have dealings with each other and often not a lot of independent, transparent reporting of financial results," Professor Harris said. "We're seeing multiple entities in different group structures in often very different businesses that are all experiencing significant financial distress at the same time. "It certainly seems to be a house of cards. Professor Harris said Australian authorities like ASIC should be asking questions. "At some point, I think we're entitled to ask, where were the gatekeepers here? Why weren't more questions asked?" he said. "Because the media has certainly been asking questions about the sustainability of Mr Gupta's empire for years and yet creditors keep lending him money, governments keep giving him handouts, and I think the public is entitled to ask why." A spokesman for ASIC said it was aware of the situation regarding the Whyalla Steelworks and GFG Alliance and was "continuing to monitor and evaluate the situation". Watch 7.30, Mondays to Thursdays 7:30pm on ABC iview and ABC TV Do you know more about this story? Get in touch with 7.30 here.
The Sun
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Shooter game played by 10 million people closing down on smash-hit consoles in two weeks – but fans say it's GOOD news
A POPULAR video game played by millions of people is shutting down on select consoles. The shooter title is now just weeks away from being killed off on certain machines – and fans say it's actually good news. 6 6 6 Gamers using a PS4 or Xbox One to play The First Descendant will soon be blocked from playing. The studio behind the game say it'll stop working on those machines on June 19, 2025. And the only way to keep playing will be to upgrade to a machine that still offers support for it. That includes the PS5, Xbox Series X or S, or Windows PCs. "Our team does experience difficulties maintaining the PS4 and Xbox One builds," the developers at Nexon explained. "So to concentrate all our resources and capabilities for the new content for Season 3 and beyond, we made this decision. "The planned termination date is June 19, and after the June 19 update, you won't be able to play The First Descendant with PS4 or Xbox One. "But your account information will stay with us since TFD is an online game and supports cross-progression with Steam, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S." The First Descendant is currently less than a year old, which makes the closure all the more shocking. It's a free massively-multiplayer online game that sees empowered 'Descendants' battling alien baddies known as the Vulgus – and has boasted more than 10 million players. Get an inside look at the new PS5 30th anniversary edition Gamers will complete quests, collect loot, and build their characters to have different power specialties. After the closure, some players will be locked out from enjoying the title. But many fans reacted to the news with understanding, even describing it as a good thing. In a Reddit thread about the change, hundreds of fans upvoted the news and said it would allow the game-maker to spend more time making the title even better. 6 One said: "That's fair. They probably want to do bigger stuff with the game." Another wrote: "Y'all gotta let the PS4 go and upgrade." And one added: "It's because the PS4 hardware limitations are limiting the scope of the game design. The dev team want to do more, so they're choosing to leave PS4 players behind. "Clearly they've weighed up the revenue they're getting from PS4 players and are happy to lose that portion. It bodes well for the future of the game to be honest." 6 6 GOING RUSTY It comes just days after another multiplayer game began closing down on older consoles. As of May 29, survival title Rust is no longer available to download for new players on PS4 and Xbox One. And the game will be switched off on those older machines in October this year. Players will need to upgrade to the PS5 or Xbox Series X/S versions of the title to keep playing. OTHER GAME CLOSURES COMING UP Here's what to watch out for... MultiVersus - May 30 xDefiant - June 3 The First Descendant - June 19 Black Desert - June 26 Resident Evil ReVerse - June 29 Madden NFL 21 - June 30 Arizona Sunshine - July 1 Skyworld - July 1 Danmachi Battle Chronicle - September 29 WWE 2K24 - September 30 Madden NFL 22 - October 20 PGA Tour 2K21 - October 30 NBA 2K24 - December 31 This upgrade will be available for free – but you'll still need a newer console to actually enjoy the game. It's also now no longer possible for new players on PS4 and Xbox One to enjoy the game without getting an upgraded console.
CNA
05-06-2025
- Business
- CNA
Japan's Eneos says unplanned shutdown begins at 77,000-bpd unit at Kawasaki
TOKYO :Japan's biggest refiner, Eneos Corp, experienced an unplanned shutdown of the 77,000 barrels-per-day No.3 crude distillation unit at its Kawasaki refinery near Tokyo, starting June 4, a company spokesperson said on Thursday. The company declined to provide a reason for the shutdown or an expected timeline for resuming operation. The refiner, part of Eneos Holdings, restarted another crude distillation unit, the 105,000-bpd No.3 CDU at its Mizushima-B refinery in western Japan on June 3, following a scheduled turnaround that began on February 26, the spokesperson said. At the same refinery, the company had resumed operations at the 95,200-bpd No.2 CDU on May 16 after an unplanned shutdown that started on April 24. Also on May 16, Eneos shut the 141,000-bpd CDU at its Sakai refinery in western Japan for scheduled maintenance, with plans to restart it in early July, the spokesperson added.
Reuters
05-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Japan's Eneos says unplanned shutdown begins at 77,000-bpd unit at Kawasaki
TOKYO, June 5 (Reuters) - Japan's biggest refiner, Eneos Corp, experienced an unplanned shutdown of the 77,000 barrels-per-day No.3 crude distillation unit at its Kawasaki refinery near Tokyo, starting June 4, a company spokesperson said on Thursday. The company declined to provide a reason for the shutdown or an expected timeline for resuming operation. The refiner, part of Eneos Holdings (5020.T), opens new tab, restarted another crude distillation unit, the 105,000-bpd No.3 CDU at its Mizushima-B refinery in western Japan on June 3, following a scheduled turnaround that began on February 26, the spokesperson said. At the same refinery, the company had resumed operations at the 95,200-bpd No.2 CDU on May 16 after an unplanned shutdown that started on April 24. Also on May 16, Eneos shut the 141,000-bpd CDU at its Sakai refinery in western Japan for scheduled maintenance, with plans to restart it in early July, the spokesperson added.
Reuters
04-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
PetroChina to close last unit of biggest north China refinery end-June, sources say
SINGAPORE, June 4 (Reuters) - PetroChina is set to close the last remaining crude unit at its biggest north China refinery at the end of this month, broadly in line with an earlier plan that marks the country's first full closure of a state-run plant, four industry sources said. PetroChina will switch off the 200,000-barrels-per-day No.1 crude unit at Dalian Petrochemical Corp on June 30, and the secondary processing units in the following month, said the sources familiar with the shutdown plan. Reuters reported last October that PetroChina intended to close the whole 410,000-bpd Dalian plant by mid-2025, part of the state oil major's long-mooted project to relocate and replace it with a smaller facility at a new site. PetroChina will meanwhile start drawing down inventory of crude oil and other feedstocks this month and clean up all the products' inventory by the end of August, said two of the sources. A company representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment. For the proposed new refinery complex to be built in Changxing island, about two hours' drive from downtown Dalian, PetroChina has yet to make a final investment decision, sources said. PetroChina began the shutdown process at the Dalian plant in late 2023. The refinery, which accounts for nearly 3% of China's national refining capacity, processes mainly Russian ESPO blend crude from Siberian fields.
