Port of Tauranga buys $37.2 mln property to expand South Auckland operations

Monday 12th August 2013

Port of Tauranga, the country's biggest export port, has spent $37.2 million buying property in Onehunga to expand its inland port operations in South Auckland.

The 6.8 hectare property is adjacent to Port of Tauranga's MetroPort inland operation, and includes three warehouses, an office building and two hectares of land earmarked for future development, chief executive Mark Cairns said in a statement. The inland port already handles more than 180,000 twenty foot equivalent containers (TEUs) and has "significant capacity" to expand.

"This strategic acquisition, with a total area of 6.8 hectares, will be key to expanding access to and from international markets for Auckland," Cairns said. "This acquisition adds to the $10 million recently spent on acquiring three properties in Tauranga."

Shares in the port operator gained 1.1 percent to $14.30, and have advanced 7.5 percent this year.

The port operator said rental income from its new properties will exceed $3 million a year.

Goodman Property Trust sold the property in the latest of a string of sales which have released more than $70 million in capital over the past 18 months, its manager Goodman (NZ) said. Units in Goodman were unchanged at $1.04.

The unconditional sale is due to settle in February next year.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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