Ann: Dr Andrew Forrest Boyer Lecture, page-24

It's an interesting strategy, a real feel-good story that will generate lots of positive publicity for FMG, particularly from the left-leaning media (ie most of it other than Murdoch) who are traditionally inclined to be antagonistic to a dirty, planet-wrecking miner. The main argument against green policies is the economic damage they will do, so the left will jump on this. A positive media perception will create a positive market perception and make it easier to attract big investors and recruit the big name technology partners that FMG will need to create an industry that's well outside their core competencies.

But Twiggy would be fully aware that the problem with steelmaking in Australia has never been access to cheap resources. Our mills have had the best and lowest-cost iron ore mines and the best and lowest-cost coking coal mines right on their doorstep, but our steel industry has been struggling for decades and unable to compete with the Asian steel mills. Replacing coking coal with green hydrogen does nothing to address the productivity issues in the Australian steel industry that start after the rocks arrive at the foundry gate. And replacing that low-cost coking coal with hydrogen, which is not currently anywhere near economic, is not going to help there. So it's ambitious to say the least.

But it's a great goal and this pilot plant is a great place to start. Twiggy was a junior miner CEO and knows how to sell a speccie story. You have a low-risk, short-term goal, a more ambitious but still realistic mid-term goal, and a blue-sky long-term goal. For this story, the short-term goal is the conversion of FMG operations to gas and renewables. The mid-term goal is branching out to strategic metals and possibly a renewables business for power generation. The blue sky goal will be steel production with green hydrogen, and on to conquer the world!