Newcastle Steelworks

The Newcastle Steelworks was a steel mill built by BHP in Newcastle, New South Wales. Construction commenced in January 1913, with operations commencing in March 1915. It was officially opened on 2 June 1915 by Governor-General Ronald Munro Ferguson.[1] Newcastle was selected due to its proximity to the Hunter Valley coalfields with the iron ore shipped from Whyalla.[2]

The 150 ha (370 acres) steelworks had a 45 km (28 mi) rail network. Initially operated by steam locomotives, 32 and 37 class diesel locomotives were later introduced.[3][4]

Having become one of the largest employers in Australia with a workforce that peaked at 11,000 in 1981, it closed on 30 September 1999.[5][6][7][8] Demolition commenced in 2000.[9]

In 2022, the Department of Planning & Environment called for expressions of interest to redevelop the site.[10][11]

References

  1. ^ The Opening of the Newcastle Steelworks Archived 2023-09-05 at the Wayback Machine Barrier Miner 22 May 1915
  2. ^ Jay, Christopher (1999). A Future More Prosperous: The History of Newcastle Steelworks 1912–1999. BHP. ISBN 1876634065.
  3. ^ Vessatile Shunter for Two-Gauge Operations Railway Transportation January 1962 pages 32-34
  4. ^ Steelworks Sign-Off Railway Digest October 1999 pages 22-24
  5. ^ Steel City without the Big Australian 7.30 Report 29 September 1999
  6. ^ Newcastle loses its soul of iron Australian Financial Review 9 December 1999
  7. ^ Newcastle remembers steelworks closure ABC News 30 September 2009
  8. ^ Closure of steelworks in Newcastle, Australia Archived 2023-03-25 at the Wayback Machine Stockholm Environment Institute June 2021
  9. ^ Newcastle Steelworks Major Projects
  10. ^ Extensively remediated former BHP steelworks site to be re-purposed Archived 2023-09-05 at the Wayback Machine ABC News 14 February 2022
  11. ^ New Push To Redevelop Steelworks Site At Newcastle 2HD 14 February 2022

32°53′42″S 151°45′36″E / 32.895°S 151.760°E / -32.895; 151.760

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