Government officials initiated and successfully brokered a deal with an overseas water bottling company to purchase a Bay of Plenty operation, documents show.
The documents, obtained under the Official Information Act, reveal New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) helped Chinese company Nongfu Spring set up in New Zealand.
In an application to the Overseas Investment Office (OIO), China's largest water bottler Nongfu Springs said it was "actively encouraged to invest in New Zealand".
"Nongfu Spring's initial interest in acquiring a water bottling facility in New Zealand was actively encouraged by NZTE," the OIO application reads.
"NZTE's director, commercial and investment relations manager for greater China, together with NZTE's investment manager ... approached Nongfu Spring and assisted with familiarisation of the water bottling industry in New Zealand."