BlueScope 'in better shape than it's ever been', says steelmaker's CEO

The company announced a half-year pre-tax profit of $439 million, which Mr Vassella described as a "strong result".

However the Australian Steel Products division, which includes the steelworks, had pre-tax earnings of $257.7 million, which is down $16 million on the same period last year.

The loss wasn't a sign that things are bad, more than the domestic steel market - thanks to the COVID renovation boom - was really, really good.

"We're coming off those super highs that we had going through COVID," Mr Vassella said.

"There was the massive expansion that occurred with the government stimulus, particularly around residential construction. We're getting to the back end of that pipeline, so we're seeing some softness there.

"But really we're back at historical levels. I think the message for the local people of the Illawarra is the business is still profitable, it's performing really well."

The predicted profit for the second half of the 2023-24 financial year is expected to be lower than the same time last year, due to softer pricing in the Asian market, but Mr Vassella said the company was in a position where it could ride that out.

"This business is in better shape than it's ever been," he said.

"At the sorts of prices we're seeing in Asia, five or 10 years ago, the business would have been losing money. But notwithstanding those softer prices, we're still making money, which is a really good story for Port Kembla."

What also helps Illawarra steelmaking is BlueScope's steadily increasing focus on its top-end products like Colorbond, which is made at the Springhill plant.

More of the steel made at the Port Kembla steelworks is being sent through the Springhill site.

"As we've changed our mix to more of the premium branded products, like Colorbond and Truecore, that reduces some of that volatility because they run to a different cycle to the commodity cycle margin we we see on hot rolled coil or plate.

"You're not totally insulated from it but we've worked hard to reduce those wild swings or those losses that we had pre-2015."

The steelmaker had previously flagged plans to develop its surplus lands at Port Kembla and has now extended that focus to include 200 hectares of BlueScope-owned land at West Dapto as well as sites in Victoria and New Zealand.

Images of redeveloped land around Port Kembla were released late last year and, while they looked futuristic, there was little detail on which businesses would be moving in.

Mr Vassella said that was because the project would be a "multi-decade opportunity".

"We have the flexibility because we own the land so we can be choosy and thoughtful about what we do and how we do it," he said.

"So we're not in a mad rush to put a for sale sign up and see who turns up. This is about being quite thoughtful about who do we think would come and work alongside us and what benefit would they provide, not only to us as a company, but also to the region."

Mr Vassella also commented on the recent incident at the steelworks where a contractor suffered burns after an oxy acetylene cylinder caught alight.

"The way it was reported versus what actually happened were quite different," he said.

"It was a superficial burn and a graze on the knuckle for the gentleman and we're very concerned about that.

"He's okay he's on the mend, he's back at work."