Wollongong Councillor Mithra Cox said the commercial decision by South32 to walk away from the expansion project was a wake up call for carbon-reliant industries in the Illawarra. "It really underlines the need for us in Australia, and specifically in Wollongong, to have a really good transition plan, because if we don't, this is what it looks like," she said.
"It means new industries and new job opportunities going elsewhere, rather than that transition being an integral part of our community, and those jobs staying here."