Decision Summary - Oceana Gold (New Zealand) Limited

The application has been approved as it met the criteria.

The Overseas Investment Office is satisfied that the individuals with control of the Applicant collectively have business experience and acumen relevant to the overseas investment, and that the Applicant has demonstrated financial commitment towards the overseas investment. The Overseas Investment Office is further satisfied that each individual that exercises control over the Applicant is of good character and is not an individual of the kind referred to in section 7(1) of the Immigration Act 1987.

The Applicant, Oceana Gold (New Zealand) Limited (Oceana), is seeking consent to acquire the subject land which is being sold by the Waitaki District Council pursuant to a public tender. The land has been declared vacant by the Oamaru District Court which has authorised the Waitaki District Council to sell the land pursuant to the Rating Act to recover unpaid rates. The subject land adjoins approximately 1,600 hectares of land owned by the Applicant at Macraes.

Oceana is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Oceana Gold Limited, a company listed on the Australian and New Zealand Stock Exchange. The Oceana group is New Zealand's largest gold producer. Oceana proposes to develop the land as part of a Heritage and Art Park being developed at the Macraes village. The Heritage and Art Park development has been ongoing since 2003 and will continue to 2012 or such later date of completion of the Applicant's mining operations when the park will be officially open to the public.

The overall Heritage and Art Park development is likely to result in the following benefits:

1. the creation of new employment opportunities;
2. enhanced domestic services for the tourism industry; and
3. the introduction of additional investment for development purposes.