PM gives metals manufacturing sector $750m boost as Australia steels for Trump-imposed tariffs

The Federal Government will inject $750 million into the nation’s metals manufacturing sector to help keep it globally competitive.

The investment will go towards the development of new technologies and forms part of the $1.7 billion Future Made in Australia Innovation Fund announced in the last federal budget.

This new funding is detailed in the wake of Australian steel and aluminium failing to be exempted from US President Donald Trump’s punitive tariff regimen.

Anthony Albanese said Australia was already prized for its alumina, aluminium, iron and steel, and this funding would value-add to Australian metals exports, worth more than $150 billion annually.

“We want to see more Australian workers make more things here,” the Prime Minister said.

“That’s why we are allocating funding to back our local metals manufacturers to seize the opportunities of the future.

“We’ve got the resources, the workers, and the know-how. The only thing we don’t have is time to waste.”

The PM said the funding would supercharge cutting-edge innovation and boost development of new low-emission technologies.

It would also fund pilot and demonstration projects aimed at lowering emissions, improving productivity and revitalising plant and equipment.

“It will have the potential to unlock commercial-scale production of green metals using Australian ores and renewable resources, opening the door to more trade opportunities, more jobs, more value-adding and lower emissions,” Mr Albanese said.

The funding will be administered independently through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency.

Industry and Science Minister Ed Husic said the investment was good news for Australian workers, as well as for the environment.

“Jobs up and emissions down, that’s our goal, and investing in our world-class Australian-made metals know-how is helping make that happen,” the Minister said.

“The work of our scientists and researchers can sharpen our competitive edge, but getting that work into our mills and smelters quickly is a challenge, and that’s where this investment comes in.

“Demand for green metals is expected to account for a third of the global metals market in coming years, this is an opportunity we cannot afford to miss.

“For a century, metal-making has been the spine of Australian industry, and this investment is there so it continues to underpin our economic and national security resilience for decades to come.”

Unions have welcomed the news, noting that the whole Future Made in Australia fund is forecast to create more than 400,000 new jobs in Australia by 2040, which includes 100,000 jobs from scaling the clean metals export industry.

ACTU president Michele O’Neil said metals exports were set to grow in demand from Australia’s major trading partners.

The above estimate is part of an earlier independent analysis of the sectors, commissioned by the ACTU, the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Conservation Foundation and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

“This investment secures a better future for Australian metals manufacturing workers and their local communities,” Ms O’Neil said.

“Supporting the growth of our metals industry through new technologies means more jobs for working people and lower emissions for our planet.

“Through the Future Made in Australia plan, local communities will be in a stronger position to benefit from secure and well-paid jobs created from the growing global demand in clean metals manufacturing.”

Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said helping some of Australia’s largest industrial emitters, such as alumina refining, to capture the benefits of a global clean energy economy would help them cut fuel bills and remain competitive.

“[That] is at the centre of a Future Made in Australia,” he said.

The government has also called on all Australians to buy Australian-made products first, in light of the disappointing news it received over the imposition of US tariffs.

Mr Albanese has not called for a boycott of US-made products and is not inclined to impose so-called revenge tariffs on American products.

Instead, he has called for Australian-made products to be the first choice for Australians at the checkout.

“Australians can have an impact by buying Australian goods,” he said.

Peter Dutton has criticised the Prime Minister over the US tariffs, saying Australia should have secured an exemption for its steel and aluminium.

“I think the government’s been caught flat-footed here,” the Opposition Leader said.

“In 2018, the Coalition government was able to negotiate with the Trump administration for an exemption.

“We have a trade surplus, we’re an important military ally to the United States, and we should have been able to negotiate the same outcome today as the Coalition was able to negotiate in 2018.”