Plenty of early interest in buying dam water

Water storage commercial manager Duncan McLeod reports good interest from potential water buyers.

A total of 81 non-binding agreements have been signed from people interested in buying water from the proposed Ruataniwha dam in Central Hawke's Bay.

The "expressions of interests" signed and recorded by the water storage scheme's commercial manager, Duncan McLeod, represent a total of 30 million cubic metres of water covering 9400ha.

Mr McLeod presented an update on buyer interest to the Hawke's Bay Regional Council on Wednesday. It was part of the council's investment company's report on progress on the Tukituki Catchment Proposal which included the Ruataniwha dam and Plan Change 6, measures to improve management of the catchment environment. He said a prospectus was expected to be released towards the end of the year.

Nailing down an accurate price to buy the dam's water would evolve once a builder to construct the dam was selected, and the construction costs defined. Bids from international companies Obrascon Huarte Lain and Bouygues Construction were being evaluated by a panel of 34 people, including seven selection members, involved in covering commercial, technical, economic and environmental compliance aspects of the scheme.

Representatives of each bidder were also being put through a question and answer process over a few weeks. A final decision on the winning bid was expected next month.

Regional council noted investors Ngai Tahu and TrustPower were now working on "due diligence" reports on the scheme after signing a memorandum of understanding with the investment company.

Regional council chairman Fenton Wilson, before the meeting, told Hawke's Bay Today the council would not rule out Ngati Kahungunu as a private investor in the scheme.

"Ngati Kahungunu has been talking about environmental concerns around the proposal and they have a chance, with everyone else, to prove or disprove the science involved in the project. They have not signalled that they want to invest, I am not saying we would not welcome that, but it's not what they have signalled so far."

Ngati Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated, headed by Hastings man Ngahiwi Tomoana, had indicated it would lodge a submission to the Tukituki Catchment Proposal on behalf of hapu groups worried about the environmental impacts of the scheme.