A British billionaire has been accused by a Liberal MP of 'hurting this country' after the shock closure of a major coal mine left hundreds of Australian workers jobless and reignited fears for the future of the nation's heavy industry.
Sanjeev Gupta, the embattled owner of the Tahmoor coal mine in New South Wales, is facing mounting pressure to either reopen the site or sell it, following months of inactivity and the recent sacking of 250 workers. New South Wales MP Angus Taylor, whose electorate of Hume includes the mine, has issued a scathing ultimatum to Mr Gupta and his company GFG Alliance.
'There's nothing wrong with this mine, it's a great mine,' Taylor said. 'And the miners just want to do their job, which is to mine coal. The mine's the heartbeat of our community.' The Tahmoor Colliery, located about 100km south of Sydney, has been in limbo since early 2025, plagued by financial woes stemming from the collapse of Gupta's key lender, Greensill Capital, in 2021.
Despite being a profitable operation that supplies metallurgical coal to the steel industry, the mine has remained closed, leaving families and local businesses in crisis. 'It certainly hurts the local economy in my electorate,' Taylor said. 'But it hurts the country as well, more broadly, because the royalties from a business like this are really important to the New South Wales government and to taxpayers.'
It comes amid growing alarm over the future of Australia's industrial backbone. Just days ago, Tomago Aluminium, the country's largest aluminium smelter, warned it may shut down by 2028 due to soaring energy costs. The smelter, which produces nearly 40 per cent of Australia's aluminium and employs over 1,000 workers, said it had failed to secure a viable electricity deal beyond its current contract.
Gupta, who also lost control of the Whyalla Steelworks earlier this year after it was placed into administration, is reportedly now considering selling the Tahmoor mine. Union leaders have called for urgent intervention, warning that the community has been 'strung along for months' while Gupta dithers. 'Workers have done their part,' said Bob Timbs from the Mining and Energy Union. 'They deserve better than silence and excuses from a billionaire who's lost interest.'
