Tasmanian government may have to pay $200m for Liberty Bell Bay remediation
The Tasmanian government faces a potential $200 million liability for environmental remediation at the Liberty Bell Bay manganese smelter site. This follows the company's failure to find a buyer and subsequent closure.
Why it matters
The situation highlights the financial risks governments assume when industrial sites are abandoned by private operators, impacting both taxpayers and local employment.
The cost of cleaning up the Liberty Bell Bay site will likely be borne by taxpayers if a sale does not eventuate, experts say. ( Supplied )
Potential remediation costs of about $200 million for the Liberty Bell Bay site could ultimately fall to the Tasmanian government if the company enters liquidation and no buyer can be found.
Administrators for the company announced on Thursday that they would be closing the manganese smelter after failing to secure a buyer.
Administrators will hold a meeting of creditors to decide whether or not to put the company in liquidation.
Link copied Share Share article Responsibility for rehabilitating and cleaning up the Liberty Bell Bay site could ultimately fall to the Tasmanian government, according to legal experts, after administrators failed to secure a buyer for the embattled manganese smelter.
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