Liberty Bell Bay enters liquidation after sale efforts fail

Liberty Bell Bay Pty Ltd, the owner of Australia’s only manganese alloy smelter, has entered liquidation after creditors voted to wind up the former GFG Alliance business following unsuccessful attempts to secure a buyer for the northern Tasmanian operation.

Morgan Kelly, Robyn Duggan and Samuel Freeman of EY Parthenon were appointed joint and several liquidators on 3 August 2026, having previously served as voluntary administrators of the company. Liberty Bell Bay entered voluntary administration on 23 March after an extended period of financial distress and liquidity pressure.

The liquidation follows the collapse of a potential sale of the smelter in July. The failure to complete a transaction resulted in the closure of the operation and the loss of approximately 200 jobs.

The administrators had sought to preserve the business as a going concern while testing interest in a sale or recapitalisation. Those efforts ultimately failed to produce a transaction capable of restarting the smelter, which had been operating at reduced capacity since May 2025 amid disruptions to ore supply, higher input costs and deteriorating global market conditions.

A report to creditors indicated that Liberty Bell Bay may have been insolvent for almost a year before the administration and that total creditor claims could range from approximately $70 million to as much as $300 million. Employees are reportedly owed approximately $27 million.

Liberty Bell Bay was acquired by GFG Alliance in 2020 and formed part of the group’s Australian industrial portfolio. The business encountered sustained financial pressure following the collapse of GFG’s principal financier, Greensill Capital, while difficulties securing feedstock and sufficient working capital contributed to the deterioration of the smelter’s position.

The administration had been triggered by secured lender White Oak Commercial Finance. It also followed regulatory action by ASIC, which in March applied to wind up Liberty Bell Bay over the company’s failure to lodge financial statements for five years.

The smelter has operated at Bell Bay for approximately 66 years and produces manganese alloys used in steelmaking. Its significance to northern Tasmania prompted state government support during the company’s financial difficulties, including a $20 million loan in 2025 intended to assist with restarting production.

Part of that funding was used to acquire a shipment of manganese ore, but the planned restart did not proceed. A stockpile of ore valued by the Tasmanian government at approximately $14 million remains under the control of Deloitte receivers Sal Algeri and Travis Anderson, who are expected to undertake a sale process.

The future of the Bell Bay site also remains unresolved. The Tasmanian government has said the property continues to have strategic potential and has attracted third-party interest, although concerns have been raised that rehabilitation of the site could ultimately cost approximately $200 million.

Liberty Bell Bay’s collapse follows broader distress across GFG Alliance’s Australian operations, including the administration of the Whyalla steelworks and the liquidation of the Tahmoor coal mine. The Bell Bay smelter had been among the group’s remaining significant Australian industrial assets.