Stake in Kiwi company Dominion Salt sold to Hong Kong firm

Dominion Salt Limited at Mount Maunganui. Photo/NZH

A Hong Kong company has been given consent to purchase a 50 per cent stake in Dominion Salt Limited for $36.9 million.

The company, Mineola Global Limited, plans to purchase the stake from Japanese-owned Cerebos Gregg's Limited according to the Overseas Investment Office decision released today.

The remaining 50 per cent of Dominion Salt is already owned by Mineola's parent company.

The latest investment will result in parent company CK Life Sciences indirectly owning 100 per cent of Dominion Salt Limited.

Dominion Salt owns a large solar salt field and refinery located on about 1630 hectares of land at Lake Grassmere in Marlborough, as well as a refinery on four hectares of land at Mount Maunganui.

Mineola Global plans to continue developing the Dominion Salt Limited business and would undertake a benchmarking exercise of the salt operation against CK Life Sciences' overseas salt operations to increase productivity and efficiencies.

The OIO found CK Life Sciences' initial investment in Dominion had resulted in significant benefits for New Zealand, including jobs and increased exports.

The company had also provided benefit through its previous investments in other companies.

The consent was granted last month.