A bold bid led by a contracting firm and involving employees themselves is being mounted to purchase the idled Tahmoor coal mine, as explosive company documents reveal a staggering $427 million transaction that stripped the asset to support Sanjeev Gupta's wider business empire.
Creditors' report exposes $427 million asset transfer
The push comes ahead of a crucial meeting this coming Monday, December 8, 2025, where creditors of Liberty Primary Metals Australia (LPMA) will decide the company's fate. LPMA, the parent company of Tahmoor Coal, was placed into administration earlier this year.
A creditors' report prepared by administrator William Buck, and seen by the Illawarra Mercury, details how Tahmoor Coal loaned $427 million to its corporate sibling, OneSteel. This debt was then assigned to LPMA. The report states this move was described as an effort to separate the Tahmoor mine from LPMA and refinance it.
This revelation directly contradicts previous assurances from Mr Gupta's GFG Alliance that the mine would be unaffected by LPMA's administration. Tahmoor was the only profitable part of the LPMA group, making it the primary target for administrators seeking to recover value for creditors.
Workforce and union back RStar-led consortium bid
In response to the crisis, a consortium spearheaded by contracting company RStar and including managers from the Tahmoor workforce is forming a bid to buy the mine. The Mining and Energy Union (MEU) has thrown its strong support behind the move.
MEU district president Bob Timbs accused Mr Gupta of gutting Tahmoor to prop up his "failing and shambolic business empire." He called on administrators to urgently facilitate a sale. "Clearly, Tahmoor is affected by its holding company being put into administration," Mr Timbs said. "We are calling on the administrators to urgently determine the best course of action to sell Tahmoor Colliery and get it producing coal again."
The mine has been shut since February, with a necessary longwall move stalled due to insufficient funds to pay suppliers. While about half the workforce has continued to be paid by GFG, RStar said in October it could no longer pay its contract workers because it was not being paid by Tahmoor Coal.
GFG defends transaction, cites path to restart
A spokeswoman for GFG Alliance defended the $427 million transaction, stating it was a "non-cash dividend paid in the form of assets" reflecting accumulated profits from previous years. She said it was a necessary step in the planned separation and refinancing of Tahmoor, which she claimed has now been completed.
The spokeswoman added that GFG is working to restart the mine, having invested over $83 million since February to pay employees and sustain operations. "We want to see workers fully back to work at Tahmoor ASAP," she stated, expressing confidence in a path forward.
However, the creditors' report indicates a sale is a likely outcome, an option supported by the workforce, union, local community, and the NSW government. The report notes that despite the massive transfer, Tahmoor Coal still owes $36 million to LPMA.
The economic impact is severe for the town of Tahmoor and the wider Illawarra region, where many of the mine's employees live. Hundreds of workers are now without pay. The RStar bid, which may broaden to include more workers, is seen as a beacon of hope, though other parties, including Appin mine owner GM3, have previously shown interest.
Creditors will meet on Monday to choose between a Deed of Company Arrangement, liquidation, or a delay, a decision that will ultimately determine the future of the Tahmoor mine and its community.
