Auckland Airport announces new aeronautical prices for next five years and $1.8 billion infrastructure investment to support the continued growth of New Zealand travel and tourism
· Strong growth – passengers up 26% since early 2014 and the number of international airlines up 61% in past 22 months
· Strong investment – currently investing $1 million in aeronautical infrastructure every working day. Now announcing a $1.8 billion aeronautical capital expenditure programme for the next five years
· Reasonable prices - in real terms, over the next five years average annual international passenger charges will reduce by 1.7% and domestic passenger charges will increase by 0.8%. A runway land charge of $1.19 (excluding GST) per passenger from the start of the 2021 financial year once construction of the second runway is confirmed
“In the 50 years since Auckland Airport opened, how New Zealanders travel and where we travel to has changed significantly. At the same time Auckland’s airport has evolved and grown from only several hundred thousand passengers in 1966 to over 18.7 million this year,” says Auckland Airport Chief Executive, Adrian Littlewood.
“Much of that growth has happened in only the last few years, with our passengers growing 26% since early 2014. At the same time the number of international airlines has grown significantly, with a 61% increase in only the last 22 months.”
“This passenger and airline growth has helped to fuel New Zealand’s recent tourism boom and bring real economic growth to our cities and regions. It has also helped to make travel much more affordable and provided more travel options for Kiwis.”
“At Auckland Airport, we are responding to that growth by currently investing over $1 million in aeronautical infrastructure every working day. To continue the transformation of our airport, today we are announcing a plan to invest around $1.8 billion in aeronautical infrastructure by 2022.”
“Today’s announcement is the result of a 17-month consultation with airlines and the airport community on the form and function of our future aeronautical infrastructure. It is also the result of a parallel year-long consultation process with airlines on investment plans, operations and pricing.”
Some of the key infrastructure projects planned for delivery at Auckland Airport between 2018 and 2022, include:
· expanding and upgrading the international departure experience;
· providing three more contact gates for international aircraft, such as the A380 and B787;
· building a new domestic jet terminal joined onto the existing international terminal;
· improving the international arrival experience by expanding the border processing area and public arrivals space;
· upgrading the international check-in area; and
· investments in public transport, roading and walking projects.
“As a result of this significant investment in infrastructure over the next five years, there will be better and faster passenger journeys through and around our airport. The experience within the terminals will be more intuitive and relaxing, and transferring between domestic jet and international flights will be faster and more efficient.”
“Setting aeronautical prices for a five-year period is a complex process involving a range of specific charges. We believe that the prices we have announced today balance different views and are in the best interests of travellers and New Zealand.”
“For the next five years, in real terms, our average international passenger charges will reduce by 1.7% each year and domestic passenger charges will only increase by 0.8% per annum. Given the scale of the planned investment this is a great outcome for travellers.”
“We believe Aucklanders and New Zealanders recognise the need for long-term planning and development of critical aviation infrastructure. In the next five years, we will take significant steps on the path to opening our second runway which we currently expect to be required in 2028. We will also be working hard with Airways New Zealand and the airlines to increase the capacity and productivity of our existing runway and will also be designing and securing the required planning permissions. Based on an opening date of 2028 we expect earthworks to start around 2020 or 2021. If the construction of the second runway is confirmed, we will introduce a runway land charge of $1.19 (excluding GST) per passenger at that time.”
“Auckland Airport’s new prices for the 2018–2022 financial years will target a return on investment of 6.99%. In setting our new prices we are conscious of the needs of our customers as well as our regulatory and investor responsibilities and the formal Commerce Commission review which now occurs as a matter of process. We believe our new prices are fair and reasonable given the significant investment we are making in long-term infrastructure, and our charges remain only a small fraction of the overall cost of travel. The average domestic charge will be well below average for Australasian airports and our international charge will continue to be middle of the pack compared with other airports around the world served from Auckland Airport.”
“As we continue to build the airport of the future over the next five years, it is critical that all the agencies and organisations operating at Auckland Airport cooperate to ensure customers continue to have a great experience while development takes place. As part of our aeronautical pricing consultation, the airlines and Auckland Airport have also agreed to work together on looking for ways to continuously lift service standards and on managing the ongoing planning and delivery of infrastructure.”
“Our five-year pricing and infrastructure plan announced today balances the needs of passengers, the airport community, the tourism industry, our investors and the airlines. Implementation of Auckland Airport’s 30-year vision is now well underway – providing thousands of jobs and driving economic growth. It will ensure that the airport continues to connect Auckland with New Zealand and New Zealand with the world,” concludes Mr Littlewood.
| An Auckland Airport release || June 8, 2017 |||
US to share more tax information about multinationals with New Zealand
Inland Revenue will receive more information about US multinationals operating in New Zealand following the signing of a new bilateral arrangement with the US Internal Revenue Service to share country-by-country reports.
Revenue Minister Judith Collins says this is great news as it means Inland Revenue will have better information about how multinationals allocate profits from their operations here.
“This will further enhance Inland Revenue’s risk assessment processes to make sure that the right amount of tax is being paid,” she says.
The arrangement will see country-by-country reports exchanged between the two countries on an annual basis starting from 2018.
Inland Revenue will reciprocate by sharing information on New Zealand-based multinationals with the IRS.
“The exchange of country-by-country reports is a key part of the OECD’s work on base erosion and profit shifting so I’m pleased to see we’ve been one of the first to sign a bilateral arrangement with the US,” Ms Collins says.
| A Beehive release || June 7, 2017 |||
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The government's principal means of evaluating the success of Callaghan Innovation, the agency tasked with accelerating the commercialisation of innovation, is how much businesses are spending on research and development, Science and Innovation Minister Paul Goldsmith told Parliament's education and science select committee. So far, it's falling short of its target.
This year's budget included a $373 million increase in spending for science and innovation in a bid to help diversify the economy support more jobs and higher wages, including a $74.6 million boost for Callaghan Innovation R&D grants.
In response to questions from Labour's research and innovation spokeswoman Megan Woods about the lack of specific success measures for Callaghan, Goldsmith said: "One of the simpler measures of progress is the overall spending by businesses on R&D and we are seeing that go decisively upwards."
He noted that investments in R&D often take years to come to fruition and it can be difficult to “pin down exactly what the payback is.” Still, the government has a “suite of measures” regarding outcomes and objectives, Goldsmith said.
The government's aim has been to “find a way to encourage companies to invest,” he said adding there has been a 29 percent increase over the past two years in business investment in R&D. Among businesses supported by Callaghan, there has been a 46 percent increase.
The overall spend, however, remains light. New Zealand still lags behind its peers with recent government data showing total R&D investment as a proportion of gross domestic product increased to 1.3 percent in 2016 from 1.2 percent in 2014. The OECD average is 2.4 percent. Business investment in R&D was 0.6 percent of GDP in 2016, well short of the government's goal to lift it to 1 percent.
"We are seeing a significant uptick. It's not as fast as we would like but we are on the way," said Goldsmith.
He also noted that while the government is en route to raising its spending on R&D to 0.8 percent of GDP, there is no timeframe to hit that target.
"We are making progress towards that ... it is difficult when you have a GDP galloping forward to the extent that we have in this country," he said in response to questions. "We will meet the target when circumstances allow."
(BusinessDesk receives assistance from Callaghan Innovation to cover the commercialisation of innovation)
| A Business Desk release || June 7, 2017 |||
Palace of the Alhambra, Spain
By: Charles Nathaniel Worsley (1862-1923)
From the collection of Sir Heaton Rhodes
Oil on canvas - 118cm x 162cm
Valued $12,000 - $18,000
Offers invited over $9,000
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242
Mount Egmont with Lake
By: John Philemon Backhouse (1845-1908)
Oil on Sea Shell - 13cm x 14cm
Valued $2,000-$3,000
Offers invited over $1,500
Contact: Henry Newrick – (+64 ) 27 471 2242