What the administrators and the lenders will be hoping is that someone takes over Whyalla as a separate entity and carries all of the risks of redundancies and environmental costs if it does not work and later on has to be closed - est. of around $200 million if not more.
If there is some Government assistance there, there may be a level of Arrium debt attached to buying out the Whyalla operation - say $150 to $200 million.
This would leave the remainder of the business being Iron Ore Mines, 2 mini mills and Molycop and scrap metal recycling to continue as a group.
ARI Price at posting:
2.2¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held