Bluescope News

Wage theft aboard a BlueScope chartered foreign-flagged ship in Port Kembla has been exposed after intervention from the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF).Inspections by ITF inspectors in Western Port and Port Kembla of the Panamanian registered vessel KEN EI, in January, led to $38,384 in coastal wages being paid immediately in cash to the 20 Filipino seafarers crewing the ship.“Upon arriving in Western Port, the crew on the KEN EI immediately asked our inspector about claims for payment for two coastal voyages and requested that the ITF contact the shipowner as they had no correspondence or indication that they would be paid by either the shipowner or charterers BlueScope and Rio Tinto…

A fire in the hold of a bulker ship on Monday briefly closed Australia's Port Kembla, the second-largest coal export port in New South Wales state, stopping shipping for eight hours.The port was shut soon after the blaze began before dawn on the MV Iron Chieftain as it unloaded dolomite, a mineral used in steelmaking which was destined for BlueScope Steel Ltd's nearby blast furnace. No injuries were reported."Shipping recommenced and the port reopened at 1130 (0130 GMT) and is expected to be back on schedule by around 1700…

NSW Ports have advised that from 1 July, there will be 2.38% increase to the Navigation Service Charge (Port Tonnage) and 3% increase to other charges (site occupancy, utilities, cargo wharfage, etc) at Port Kembla. The Navigation Service Charge (Port Tonnage) will increase from A$0.77 per GT to A$0.79 per GT for vessels calling at both the Coal Terminal and BlueScope Berths. For general berths, the increase will be from A$0.46 per GT to A$0.47 per GT for vessels up to 50,000 GT. The new site occupancy charged by NSW Ports at BlueScope Berths will increase from A$350.66 per hour to A$361.18 per hour. For further details and information about operations in Australia contact GAC Australia at [email protected]

A clever new renewable energy solution combining COLORBOND® pre-painted steel sheet roofing with cutting-edge, thin-film solar panels is set to provide Australian homes with a streamlined, aesthetically pleasing rooftop energy system that captures the sun’s energy as both electricity and heat. ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht joined Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry, Bob Baldwin, to launch the new technology at a home in Sydney today. The $5 million landmark project was undertaken by the Australian-based global building market supplier BlueScope, with $2.3 million support from ARENA. “Today we are witnessing an exciting new technology solution moving from the lab to be prototyped on everyday Australian rooftops for the first time,” Mr Frischknecht said.

Ryan Flynn is returning to Konecranes Plc and he has been appointed Executive Vice President and Head of Business Area Equipment. Flynn will be a member of the Konecranes Group Executive Board and will report to Pekka Lundmark, President & CEO. Flynn will start in his new position on June 1, 2014. Ryan Flynn has held the position of Vice President, Strategy & Business Development at BlueScope Steel, Global Building Solutions since 2013. In 2005-2013, Flynn worked at Konecranes Plc as the Senior Vice President…