Iron-willed refugee’s inspiring path to business success

Hannah Stenning
08:00am September 17 2024

Abas Faiaz’s path to running his own successful business has been tougher than most. 

When Abas was 16 years old his parents had to make a difficult decision. As ethnic Hazaras living in Afghanistan in 2001 they feared for their son’s life under Taliban rule. So, they paid a people smuggler to take Abas on a leaky boat, via Indonesia, to Australian territory on Christmas Island. 

He was fortunate to make it. “We were late for our boat and missed the first one, which was lucky because that boat was never seen again,” Abas says. 

He spent the next eight months at the Woomera Detention Centre before moving to Mudgee and finding work in an abattoir.  

After working hard to set himself up financially Abas and his roommate Russell Abas Ali, another refugee from Afghanistan, were offered the chance to join two other Afghan refugees in setting up a metal recycling business. 

From humble beginnings in 2007, Metal Biz is now spread across several sites in Queensland and operates on a huge scale.
 

Metal Biz co-founder Abas Faiaz (left) with one of his business partners Russell Abas Ali, and General Manager Kamal Kaur. (Supplied)

At their Rocklea operation, old cars, appliances and construction materials are piled in a tower five stories high, while an electric crane (one of only two in Australia) picks up the materials and feeds them into a giant shredder that spits out chunks of metal ready to be put in shipping containers and sent to Southeast Asia. 

From there the metal will be reprocessed and made into new products by companies such as BlueScope Steel. 

“If you’re buying a COLORBOND roof, there’s a chance it came from our scrap metal,” says Abas. 

“Our civilisation depends on steel and concrete, and when we consume something, it has to go somewhere. With recycling we can use the same metal again and again indefinitely, instead of having to mine virgin soil.”

Metal Biz also offers a valuable service to consumers, tradies and businesses who can drop off their scrap metal and get paid. For example, the average car is worth $500 - $2000 in scrap metal and parts. “It beats taking it to the tip,” says Abas. 

Shane Howell, Westpac General Manager for Commercial Banking, says he’s proud that the bank has partnered with Metal Biz on their banking needs since the start. 

“Seeing how Metal Biz has grown from a small company started by roommates with a business plan written on the page of a notebook, to the large, innovative commercial business it is today, is truly amazing. 

“What is even more impressive, when speaking with Abas, is the impact they are having on people and the environment. They are a purpose-driven to the core, and a leading example of ESG in action.”

One of their social initiatives is to employ refugees and people from non-English speaking backgrounds to train and accredit them. 

“They are really hard-working people. They want to support their families and be someone useful to society, but sometimes the language barrier keeps them from that dream,” says Abas. 

“If we can help them with their English as well as their licensing, compliance and training then it’s a great help. And you can see they really appreciate it. They become someone useful, and someone who can develop their skills and enjoy a satisfying career.”

Metal Biz has big plans for the future. Abas is heading to Belgium, Germany and Italy this year to research new equipment and cutting-edge technology to make their operation even more efficient.  

But he never loses sight of his core mission, and the passion that drives him.

“Recycling works both ways,” he said. “We work with communities, households and small businesses. The idea is that we take something, but we give back, and that’s where I believe we need to be if we want to grow as a society.” 
 

Hannah Stenning

Hannah is a Walkley Award winning journalist who started her career in television as a producer for The Today Show and 60 Minutes, before moving to digital as Commissioning Editor of news.com.au and then Head of Video for News Corp Australia. She is now a Corporate Affairs Lead for Westpac.

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