Exclusive deal positions Sicona at centre of Port Kembla’s historic rezoning
Plus, UOW research rewarded, workers' compo update and festival 'paused'
The BlueScope Project Emily land transformation site, with a photos from the announcement overlaid plus Dr Tiffani Apps and Kiama. Pics by Martin Feld, BlueScope and UOW.
Sicona has secured an exclusive agreement with BlueScope to fast-track plans for its flagship battery materials plant on newly-rezoned Port Kembla land.
This exclusivity arrangement grants the Business NSW Award winner Sicona Battery Technologies rights to explore the placement of its advanced materials demonstration plant on the site. This move is integral to scaling its innovative battery technology toward commercialisation. Sicona CEO Christiaan Jordaan is “proud to see BlueScope championing local innovation” and added the collaboration helps strengthen Australia’s domestic battery ecosystem.
The agreement was revealed yesterday as official rezoning of BlueScope’s 200 hectares of non-operational land was announced. BlueScope hailed the move a “game-changer” for the region. The new Special Purpose (SP4) zoning unlocks the site for diversified uses, including technology hubs, education precincts, and advanced manufacturing, moving beyond traditional heavy industry.
Planning Minister Paul Scully, also the Wollongong MP, said this initiative will “benefit the Illawarra’s economy for decades to come,” projecting the potential to deliver up to 20,000 new jobs.
“This is both one of the world’s largest land transformation and the biggest change to Illawarra’s industrial landscape since steelmaking commenced nearly 100 years ago,” Scully said.
In a LinkedIn post he said the “project will deliver major opportunities for not only Wollongong but the entire state and its importance is recognised, having moved through the planning system in just seven months”.
Pending final funding approvals, the move will help Sicona fast-track the build and planning with the demonstration plant expected to be commissioned in 2027.
BlueScope’s head of property development Michael Yiend said the business was grateful for the accelerated pathway to rezoning provided by Minister Scully and the NSW Government while also appreciating the near universal support.
“The community’s positive feedback has played a vital role in shaping the outcome, and we express our appreciation to the community for their support,” Yiend said. “We were overwhelmed to have received over 200 supportive submissions for the project while on public exhibition, with only four opposing. It is rare to have this level of alignment and support across industry, government, business and the community.”
Property Council Illawarra Shoalhaven Regional Director Matthew Wales said the announcement – which comes in the same week as the release of the draft Illawarra Shoalhaven Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plan – sent a powerful domestic and global signal.
“This rezoning is a once-in-a-century opportunity to reshape the industrial landscape and firmly cement the Illawarra as Australia’s next major economic engine room,” Mr Wales said.
It’s been a big week for UOW …
Vice-Chancellor elected to Swedish academy: UOW Vice-Chancellor Professor GQ Max Lu AO has been named an International Fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences.
The election recognises Professor Lu’s established leadership in advanced materials and sustainable energy, fields directly impacting the Illawarra’s economic future. Professor Lu has published over 600 scientific papers and holds around 25 international patents, having delivered commercial solutions in green hydrogen and energy storage. He said he was “absolutely delighted and honoured to be elected to this prestigious academy in Sweden.”
This international recognition further elevates UOW’s global profile in R&D and commercial capability.
Research funding: After news that UOW will host the new Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence for Renewable Fuels, a $72 million national research collaboration, comes even more funding.
More than $2.6 million will go to UOW research projects that will address critical knowledge gaps across a diverse range of areas, including childhood development and social media, cybersecurity and coastal environments.
Four UOW researchers – Dr Tiffani Apps, Dr Zhiguang Zhang, Dr Yudi Zhang and Dr Lei Yuan – were awarded a collective $2 million through the ARC Discovery Early Career Research Award (DECRA) fellowship scheme. In a timely announcement, Dr Apps, from the School of Education, will explore how Australian families use social media and how that affects children aged 8 to 17.
Read about the breadth of the individual UOW projects here.
Workers’ compo reform
The NSW workers’ compensation stalemate is finally over, and premiums are now frozen for the next 18 months.
NSW Government reached an agreement on reforms, sparing local businesses and community providers from significant average premium increases.
The compromise, which builds on crossbench efforts, prevents average premium hikes for a legislated 18 months, providing financial certainty to Illawarra businesses and community sector providers. The agreement retains key ”whole person impairment” thresholds and introduces a return to work intensive program.
Business NSW CEO Daniel Hunter commended both major parties for working through the issues: “These reforms are an early Christmas present for the hardworking business owners who are already enduring significant cost pressures.”
Not so good news out of Kiama
Well, that’s definitely the case if you’re a music fan - no Kiama Jazz and Blues Festival in 2026.
An ongoing DA issue with one venue, Fillimore’s, has yet to be resolved and, organisers said on the event website, has prompted the pause button to be hit: “While this pause is heartbreaking, it is also temporary. Our focus now turns to 2027—the Festival’s 40th anniversary - with the aim of returning stronger, more stable.”
Kiama mayor Cameron McDonald yesterday said the council “had not given up on March”. “While this pause is heartbreaking, it is also temporary. Our focus now turns to 2027—the Festival’s 40th anniversary - with the aim of returning stronger, more stable,” he wrote on LinkedIn.
You know it’s Christmas when …
Extended trading hours kick in. That day arrives tomorrow, Saturday, December 13 for Wollongong Central and Stockland Shellharbour. In Wollongong it continues until 5.30pm on Christmas Eve;the centre is closed on Christmas Day and reopens for the Boxing Day sale on December 26 from 9am to 5.30pm. In Shellharbour, the extended hours are here.
Hot ticket
Need a nudge to find that Christmas spirit? Join in at Croom Regional Sporting Complex, this evening (December 12) between 5pm-9pm for Carols by Candlelight, courtesy of Shellharbour City Council.