Tauranga expansion gets conditional approval

The project is designed to increase the port’s capacity for larger vessels and accommodate future growth in container and cargo volumes. It would extend the Sulphur Point container berth by 385 metres in two stages and extend the Mount Maunganui wharves by 315 metres. The works would use cargo storage land within the port’s existing footprint, alongside associated reclamation and dredging of Stella Passage.

Port of Tauranga chief executive Leonard Sampson welcomed the draft decision. “This development is vital for the regional and national economy and is urgently needed as we are currently at capacity. The Stella Passage development will bring widespread economic benefits, reduce costs for importers and exporters and unlock decarbonisation opportunities,” he said.

The development would also involve dredging about 10.55 hectares of Stella Passage to a depth of approximately 16 metres below Chart Datum. Around 1.5 million cubic metres of material is expected to be removed as part of the dredging programme, with ongoing maintenance dredging required to retain the channel depth.

The first 285-metre Sulphur Point berth extension is expected to increase the container terminal’s annual capacity from about 1.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units to around two million.

The proposal has previously been considered by the Environment Court, following an earlier consenting process that included extensive hearings and engagement with tangata whenua. Concerns have included potential effects on the harbour environment, customary fisheries and culturally significant areas.

The port has two days to comment on the conditions proposed by the expert panel. Other parties will then have an opportunity to comment before the panel issues its final decision, which is expected in early September.