The Ruakura Superhub has officially been opened, marking the completion of a 16-year journey to bring the first stage of the 490ha superhub to fruition.
Tainui Group Holdings, the commercial entity of Waikato-Tainui, has been developing the superhub since 2006, navigating a raft of planning, financing, construction and tenanting milestones to deliver the 92ha stage one, which opened for business on Thursday.
Stage 1 of the Ruakura Superhub includes the first 9ha of what will eventually be a 30ha inland port served directly by the East Coast Main Trunk rail line and a dedicated interchange on the recently opened Waikato Expressway. The first stage includes a 35ha logistics hub, 25ha of industrial space, a 10ha wetland and network of local roads.
Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson said Ruakura Superhub is a “superb example” of the benefits to Aotearoa when iwi and the Crown work together.
“This is due to the dogged determination and courageous investment by Waikato-Tainui and Tainui Group Holdings to continue to pursue the idea through a long period of minimal investment in the regions and long before most people had even heard of an inland port,” he said.
“We are very proud of our Government’s investment of $56.8 million in public infrastructure at Ruakura through the PGF and Infrastructure Reference Group Programmes, together with Tainui Group Holdings and Hamilton City Council.”
Future plans for the full 490ha estate include major industrial, commercial and retail sub-precincts, along with provision for up to 3230 residential sections.
Extensive planning has gone into making the superhub as sustainable as possible. Increased use of rail is forecast to remove 65,000 truck journeys per year from roads when the superhub is fully operating. One million native plants are currently being cultivated and planted for the 10ha wetland and swales, and near-future plans include a microgrid of up to 5MW of solar photovoltaics.
The location of Ruakura at the intersection of key transport networks servicing the golden triangle, improved container efficiencies and the overall quality of the development is proving an attractive combination for major tenants. Over 70% of the Stage 1 logistics precinct is already leased or under-offer.
Confirmed tenants to date include major new facilities for global players Kmart and Maersk, along with domestic growth businesses Big Chill, PBT and Waitomo Group.
The inland port itself is a 50% joint venture of TGH and Port of Tauranga with initial capacity of up to 60,000 container movements per year. This is set to grow in stages to 1 million container movements per year when the inland port is fully developed.
Key investment partners included the New Zealand Government which co-funded public infrastructure through the Provincial Growth Fund and Infrastructure Reference Group programmes. Also, Hamilton City Council, which provided $5 million funding for transport infrastructure and took the lead on the project to build public roads within the Superhub.
