Watchdog to China: Explain $1.5b plan

The Overseas Investment Office wants more information from the Chinese-owned company planning to invest $1.5 billion in this country's dairy industry, including buying the Crafar family farms that were placed in receivership.

The office said it had returned the application by Natural Dairy (NZ) Holdings to buy land to the company's solicitors for further information.

A check of the application had shown further information was needed and the correct fee had not been paid, OIO manager Annelies McClure said.

It was standard OIO practice to do an initial assessment of the level of information provided with any application and check the fee. That was not a substantive assessment of the merits of the application, but was an initial check of whether sufficient information had been provided that would allow a substantive assessment to be made, she said.

When sufficient information was provided with an application and the correct fee paid, the OIO registered it and started processing the application.

Natural Dairy said it intended to resubmit its application to the OIO as soon as required financial information was available.

It was working on a more detailed business plan that focused on acquisitions that were the subject of the OIO application.

Natural Dairy told the Hong Kong Stock Exchange last month that it had signed a deal to acquire assets including farms, livestock and milkpowder production plants, with the deal to be settled partly in cash and partly through an issue of convertible bonds.

The OIO said it aimed to make decisions on high-quality, straightforward applications, where no third party consultation was needed or special land involved, within 50 working days of the date of registration.

- NZPA