Chinese interests gain consent to buy two Auckland islands

Manukau Harbour / File Photo.

Chinese interests have been granted consent by the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) to buy two Auckland islands linked to the mainland in a $41.5 million deal. They propose to develop a $130.6 million six-star luxury resort and nature reserve.

The OIO has given consent to Rainbow Holdings NZ to buy 27ha of land on Pararekau Island and Kopuahingahinga or Lee island, standing in the Manukau Harbour across from Wattle Downs.

Lawyers acting for the proposed vendor of the land, Karaka Harbourside Estate, later confirmed the vendor had cancelled the sale before the OIO consent was given.

Rainbow Holdings was also granted OIO consent to buy 81 per cent of the shares of Lee Island Investments from Simon Deng-Li (also known as Yin Bing Deng-Li). This did not go ahead. But Rainbow Holdings now owns 9 per cent of Lee Island Investments NZ with Simon Deng-Li still holding the majority.

In another deal which got consent, Fletcher Residential which is 34.2 per cent Australian owned is buying 3.6ha of land at 172a Don Buck Rd at Massey on Auckland's north-western outskirts from New Zealand's Birdwood Residential Estates which will subdivide the land into 76 residential lots.

Fletcher will create a new housing estate there but the amount involved was withheld.

Also suppressed was the price of a big South Canterbury farm sale: New Zealand's Lochan Mor LP sold assets to Sweden's Southern Pastures Limited Partnership.

"The applicant intends to operate Lochan Mor Farm as part of its South Canterbury portfolio, and will increase performance through shared efficiencies, additional capital expenditure and sound farming practices," the office said.

A $66,295,980 deal is allowed involving sensitive land at Papamoa in the Bay of Plenty. Thailand's TCC Assets, International Beverage Holdings and Interbev Investment is buying assets from Fraser and Neave and Frasers Centrepoint.

French owned Cloudy Bay Vineyards, 66 per cent Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton controlled, is allowed to buy 46ha of Cromwell land from New Zealand's Northburn Wine Company and that price was also suppressed.

The Canadian Government's Cumberland Dairy Farm can buy 964.3ha of land at 154 Klondyke Rd, Montalto, Canterbury from New Zealand's Klondyke Dairy's. The Canadians intent to develop the farming operation on the land.

For $85,754 plus GST, Australian-owned Isaac Asphalt can buy 1.8ha of land at 550
McLeans Island Rd near Christchurch from New Zealand's Robert Geoffrey McGregor Clarke, William James Luff and Alister Gordon McDonald as trustees of The Isaac Conservation and Wildlife Trust.

"The applicant is a joint venture between Downer New Zealand Limited and The Isaac Construction Co. Limited which, was formed to own and operate an asphalt processing plant which is situated on 1.8847 hectares of land at McLeans Island Road. The formation of the joint venture will allow Downer and Isaac to continue their existing upper South Island asphalt operations in a cost effective manner," the office said.

Japan's Pan Pac Forest Products can buy 733ha of land at 122 Waipatiki Rd, Hastings from New Zealand's GS Collins Family Trust for $3.1 million.

• An earlier version of this story which was repeated within the New Zealand Herald on January 31, 2015 reported that the sale had gone ahead.