Interest-free loans for Arrium suppliers

Arrium's suppliers in South Australia will be offered interest-free loans to help keep them afloat.

Creditors will be eligible to apply for three-year loans of up to $750,000 to assist with their cashflow while Arrium is in administration under the $10 million SA government scheme.

Some loans will be converted to grants where the government is advised there are special circumstances.

South Australian Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis said it was vital to preserve skills and expertise in Whyalla, where the government is working to save Arrium's steelworks.

"We're talking about engineering firms, family businesses," Mr Koutsantonis told reporters on Monday.

"They are the lifeblood of the Whyalla economy. Without them, you would see widespread dislocation and social upheaval in Whyalla.

"This is about helping them get through this period."

Premier Jay Weatherill will meet workers in Whyalla on Tuesday alongside Mr Koutsantonis, Regional Development Minister Geoff Brock and Arrium's administrators.

Mr Koutsantonis said the state government would "very soon" announce a co-investment plan to help upgrade Whyalla's steelworks.

But it would not include planned upgrades to the Techport shipbuilding hub in Port Adelaide, which Arrium's administrators have identified as a major opportunity for the struggling company.

"Techport is its own business case and it stacks up on its own," Mr Koutsantonis said.

"(We are) talking with the successful proponents about what's required at Techport. Once we get a final picture on that we'll be moving very quickly."