Executive Analyst - Public Sector Advisory

Whyalla steel administrator gets extension as sale process delayed. Updated Sep 21, 2026 - 3.17pm, first published at 1.24pm The Whyalla steelworks could remain in administrator KordaMentha's hands until March next year under a court-approved extension, after a decision to permanently shut the plant's ageing blast furnace further delayed the sale process. Justice Penelope Neskovcin on Monday approved an application by lawyers for KordaMentha in the Federal Court to extend the deadline for holding a second creditors' meeting, to March 31, 2027. The insolvency group has been running the operation since February 2025. KordaMentha and the South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas announced on September 14 that up to 600 jobs would be axed at the plant after attempts to revive the blast furnace at Whyalla, 380 kilometres north of Adelaide, were abandoned. The furnace has not been operating since April because of technical problems, although another part of the steelworks - a rolling mill which bends semi-finished steel - has continued operating. Neskovcin wanted assurances from KordaMentha that the timetable would not blow out beyond March 31, with senior counsel Carl Moller stating, while there were no guarantees, the administrators were confident. "The event at the blast furnace has changed the dynamics," Moller told the court, however, "they are confident given the ongoing involvement of the two levels of government". KordaMentha has been operating the Whyalla steelworks since the state government forced the plant into administration amid a growing pile of unpaid debts, accusing its owner, British industrialist Sanjeev Gupta, of starving the business of investment. The federal and state governments had previously pledged $2.8 billion for a rescue package for the plant under new ownership. The insolvency and restructuring firm has been collecting fees equating to about $3 million per month in its role as administrator, while also running a sale process to find a permanent owner. Two final bidders - Matt Latimore's M Resources and India's Jindal Steel International - are in negotiations to acquire the steelworks, nearby iron ore mines and the Whyalla port. Malinauskas had planned to announce a preferred buyer by September 30, but last week conceded the sale process had been disrupted by the blast furnace closure and is now targeting a decision by Christmas. Both final bidders have long-term plans to install a new modern blast furnace at Whyalla. Meanwhile, Jindal, which operates steel-making plants in Oman and the Czech Republic, plans to import semi-finished steel from the Middle East to feed the rolling mill. M Resources has said it would import the material from partners in Asia, under a similar structure. Australia's largest steelmaker, BlueScope Steel, has the right of last offer, and can choose to match the final bid.

KordaMentha brings in Deloitte duo to build out customer advisory line. 08 September 2026 Consultancy.com.au KordaMentha continues to expand its services portfolio, this time adding former Deloitte Digital duo Meredith Wheelhouse and Sean Brennan as a partner and executive director. Wheelhouse and Brennan both join KordaMentha in Sydney after respectively spending four and five years at Deloitte Digital, and will be tasked with building out the firm's customer advisory line within its performance improvement division. Long known as one of Australia's restructuring & turnaround heavyweights, KordaMentha has been busy evolving into a broader professional services firm over the past few year by continually adding new practices and capabilities to its advisory portfolio. "Meredith and Sean have spent their careers helping organisations reimagine how to connect with customers so that they can win preference and grow organically," the firm stated. "That expertise is particularly relevant in a challenging market, where understanding what customers value can help organisations stand out through differentiated products, services, and experiences." Meredith Wheelhouse. Prior to joining Deloitte Digital as a partner in 2022, Wheelhouse spent two years as a customer experience division director at Macquarie and another five at Citi in Singapore and Hong Kong, latterly as head of client client engagements for the Asia Pacific and Middle East & North Africa. Before that, she spent over a decade as a consultant at PwC between Sydney and China. As per the firm, Wheelhouse brings deep experience in customer growth strategy, product & service design and innovation, and AI-enabled business change to KordaMentha's performance improvement team, having led some of the region's most significant customer and digital transformation programs with a particular focus on the banking and financial services sector. "I'm excited to be part of a firm known for helping organisations navigate complex challenges and deliver results that count," Wheelhouse said. "I believe the future belongs to those which are AI-powered and deeply human where artificial intelligence amplifies people, products, services, and experiences to unlock value, growth, and outcomes once thought impossible." Sean Brennan. Like Wheelhouse, Brennan also brings financial services sector experience to the firm, having spent four years at AMP as a design lead and head of design innovation before joining Deloitte as a director in 2021, with a twelve-month stint at the Australian Tax Office in between. Earlier, he spent more than a decade at US-based innovation design consultancy Continuum (now part of EPAM). Trained in art & industrial design at the Rhode Island School of Design, Brennan is described by KordaMentha as operating at the intersection of creativity, strategy, and transformation - or using a design focus to reframe commercial problems into compelling narratives and prototypes that resonate with consumers, uncover opportunities, and present clear, actionable pathways to value.