Tainui Group Holdings and Port of Tauranga are teaming up to fast-track the development of Ruakura Inland Port in Hamilton.
The 50:50 joint venture aims to bring the facility to fruition within two years and includes an initial 50-year ground lease to establish the inland port.
Plans to start port operations at Ruakura following the opening of the nearby Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway are currently scheduled for the end of 2021.
Parekawhia McLean chair of Te Whakakitenga o Waikato, the Waikato Tainui parliament, says the iwi is pleased to team up with New Zealand’s largest international hub port to bring the project to life.
“It’s exciting to confirm a concrete path forward for this project of national significance which will unlock economic, social and environmental benefits for New Zealand, our region and our iwi,” McLean says.
Port of Tauranga chief executive Mark Cairns says it makes sense to team up with Tainui Group to unlock efficiencies for importers and exporters by utilising Ruakura Inland Port.
“This new partnership adds to our strong and growing capacity to serve the Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions.
“It combines our own expertise in developing and operating ports, the deep regional connections of Tainui Group Holdings and the scale and efficiencies offered by Ruakura and its road and rail connections.
“By enhancing the MetroPort Auckland to Tauranga rail service with calls at Ruakura, we can unlock significant environmental and economic benefits for freight customers,” Cairns says.
Local communities will also benefit with a potential 60,000 truck movements per year removed from the region’s roads when site is fully developed.
Tainui Group chief executive Chris Joblin says the shared strategic interest with Port of Tauranga had become increasingly obvious.
“This agreement brings clarity and certainty to the development of Ruakura Inland Port and signals we are open for business. As the largest port in New Zealand, Port of Tauranga will bring world class expertise in developing and running ports,” Joblin says.
“We are excited to enter this partnership based on strongly aligned values and interests. And for our iwi, it means we can make the inland port a reality in a way that retains the underlying whenua, which will never be sold.
“With 192 hectares earmarked for logistics and industrial uses, we expect a number of other customer conversations in progress to bear fruit in the coming months as distribution and logistics companies and manufacturers seek out a preferential location at Ruakura,” he says.
Port of Tauranga and Tainui Group have been in talks since August last year when they signed a rail services agreement to enable Port of Tauranga’s cargo trains running between MetroPort Auckland and Tauranga to service Ruakura Inland Port.
The ‘golden triangle’ of Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga already accounts for around half of all freight volumes in New Zealand and container volumes are forecast to grow 60% in container volumes by 2042.
KiwiRail operates up to 86 trains per week for Port of Tauranga between MetroPort Auckland and Tauranga, carrying up to 9,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units). The route currently has unused capacity and the additional service stop will improve utilisation and reduce the number of trucks on roads.
