NZ Development: Resource Management Act - Changing the Rules

Finally, after years of talking, New Zealand finally gets some movement in the right direction:

Slow Decline of New Zealand

New Zealand is going backwards slowly, inexorably. The latest example of this comes with the news that the country's only rail enabled Cook Strait ferry is to be shut down, with no replacement in sight. Of course, that's not what the incompetent politicians in Wellington are saying, they're spinning it as saving the taxpayer money (of course they would). 

By doing away with the last rail enabled ferry, the rail link from one end of the country to the other will be broken for the first time since the Cook Strait ferries were introduced in 1962. Before then, rail freight could not be transported on the same wagon right through the country. Instead, coastal shipping was used; for instance from Nelson to Wellington, the journey was by overnight vessel via French Pass, or from Lyttelton (Christchurch) to Wellington. Or we can go farther back, getting from Wellington to Auckland meant taking a ship to New Plymouth and then rail from there to Auckland. 

When the Cook Strait ferries came along, for the first time a rail journey could start in Invercargill at one end of the country in the deep south, and end at Whangarei in the far north, the whole journey could take place with the same wagon taking the entire trip. 

But now, this is all too difficult. The government owned rail company want to replace the ferries they currently run. Those new ferries are intended to be rail enabled, except they're at least four years away and no contract has been signed for their construction. Do you smell bullshit at this stage? I certainly do.

These new ferries won't match the existing infrastructure, so new facilities must be built. The usual way to do this would be to build the new facilities alongside the old, and continue using the old until the new ships arrive. Given this is the most sensible approach, my thinking is the country is being lied to, no rail enabled ferries will arrive.

Future governments will, likely, simply cancel the whole idea of a rail connected country, effectively taking NZ back in time to an age when everything was much more difficult to do. I see this approach happen all the time, and this is largely driven by the North Island who see no point in connecting the whole country as they live in their North Island bubble.

This is another reason to say goodbye to the North Island, the South Island needs to go it alone and achieve independence. If it does not become independent then the South Island will be destroyed by the idiots in the North, mark my words. 

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/559509/aratere-interislander-s-only-rail-enabled-ferry-to-retire

Grading New Zealand Infrastructure

Mississippi has reported its grades, and below I grade New Zealand too. NZ needs to do this regularly:

https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/2024/11/14/mississippis-infrastructure-gets-report-card/76290540007/

Mississippi:

The individual rankings:

• B: Rail
• B-: Ports
• C+: Solid Waste
• C: Aviation
• C: Energy
• D+: Bridges
• D+: Dams
• D: Inland Waterways
• D: Levees
• D-: Drinking Water
• D-: Roads
• D-: Wastewater

New Zealand:

The individual rankings:

• D: Rail
• B: Ports
• C+: Solid Waste
• C+: Aviation
• C+: Energy
• C-: Bridges
• B: Dams
• D: Inland Waterways
• D: Levees
• C+: Drinking Water
• C-: Roads
• C: Wastewater

Cook Strait Connection

With the government refusing to fund the cost blowout of the proposed upgrade to the Cook Strait ferry service run by KiwiRail, is it time to revisit the idea of a Cook Strait tunnel?

I addressed the feasibility of such a project here: https://kenhorlor.blogspot.com/2016/01/cook-strait-tunnel.html

The government has turned down KiwiRail: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/504650/interislander-ferry-fleet-project-to-wind-down-after-being-denied-further-government-funding

New Zealand is a funny little country at times. It always chases the newest fad, and ditches the old quickly. Problem is, when the fad is no longer viable or is proven to be a dud, nothing is left to revert back to. This is what has happened to NZ's transport network. Rail and coastal shipping have been left to atrophy while the country got carried away with road and air transport. Now, the chickens are coming home to roost. NZ needs to think longer term, keeping all options available for a robust system. This is vital as the country has many rivers, and a long thin country made up of many islands. Keeping the country connected means juggling everything, not just relying on a few options.

Auckland Harbour Bridge Falling Down

It's a minor example of the decay and lack of investment in New Zealand's infrastructure; Auckland Harbour Bridge was hit by a truck crossing the bridge and now several lanes will be out of action for weeks while repairs are underway. For decades a second option for crossing the harbour has been touted but nothing has ever been done about it. Successive governments have sat on their hands. So commuters have to queue for hours, instead of using a viable alternative.

But this is only the start. Bridges across NZ are chronically underfunded and their maintenance and upgrade has long since been abandoned. With an election just weeks away, hopefully the issues can be kept in focus leading up to polling day, and hopefully voters will bear the lack of investment in mind when they cast their ballot.

Record Transport Spend

Drowned out by the Coronavirus announcements, New Zealand has just announced a massive infrastructure spend; $54 billion over the next 10 years. This is much needed and will act as a stimulus for the economy post the Coronavirus shutdown.

https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/120386461/phil-tyford-is-promising-a-54-billion-transport-binge-over-the-next-ten-years-with-a-focus-on-safety

Auckland SkyCity Convention Centre Fire

Blame the inability to contain the fire on 9 years of National government under-funding while they were in office. They're bloody incompetent. Read this blog post;

https://thedailyblog.co.nz/2019/10/24/nz-herald-online-coverage-of-the-sky-city-fire-concerns-the-cbd-can-be-shut-down-by-a-blowtorch-why-the-fire-is-a-perfectly-delicious-metaphor-of-national-in-power-for-9-years/

I talk about the lack of infrastructural investment and the tendency to centre everything on Auckland in my book Snob's Guide to New Zealand; funny thing is, it's been read all over the world but New Zealanders are not so keen. Ridiculous I know, but there you go.

Large Businesses For Sale Australia

Australia appears to be undergoing some changes as companies announce divestments:

• Fulton Hogan Construction Australia is now for sale by their New Zealand parent. This takes in all of their civil engineering assets in Australia.
• Downer Mining is said to be for sale,
• Laing O'Rourke's Australian operations are also said to be on the market.
• Lendlease engineering division is reported for sale,
• BGC Contracting has been reported for sale (source: The Australian), and;
• A while back The Australian reported Holcim Australia was up for grabs, which was denied by the company, though it should be noted that it no longer fits into the LafargeHolcim framework.

Did I miss anything? It looks to be a combination of factors in play, some companies are retreating while others are moving out of basic materials and into utilities and the like.

My pick of the above would be Downer Mining at $300mil. Then apart from the above picks, Boral at their current share price are a takeover target, as well as Macmahon Holdings.