Report backs Northport expansion
An independent report into the social and economic potential of plans for growth at Northport claims about 1,500 new jobs could be created at Marsden Point, in Whangarei and around the wider Northland region by expanding the container port.
A proposed shipyard and floating drydock on the port’s western boundary could be the catalyst for another 1,135 new jobs in the area.
The report has been developed by Polis Consulting Group for Northland regional economic development agency Northland Inc.
It estimates that the expanded container port would enable Northland to contribute an extra $160 million to the national GDP within the next 38 years. The shipyard and floating drydock would deliver nearly twice that – some $290m – over the same period.
However, the report bases its findings on the assumption that the government and relevant crown agencies back the region’s calls for significant, sustained investment in its transport infrastructure.
“We have said for ages that Northport can play an integral role in a resilient and geographically astute supply-chain strategy for the Upper North Island,” says Northport chief executive Jon Moore.
“But only if decision-makers open their eyes to this potential and back our region with the modern, 21st-century transport infrastructure that Northland community and business leaders have been crying out for.”
Vaughan Cooper, of Northland Inc, believes the report’s findings create a strong economic case for the expansion.
“It clearly highlights the potential economic benefits of the Northport expansion for the Northland region,” he says.
“Job creation of this scale will have ripple effects across our communities, while also providing facilities to increase exports and service vessels from outside of the region – both of which will have positive impacts on the region’s economy.”
The Polis report can be accessed from Northland Inc’s website. Its findings echo those in an economic assessment undertaken for Northport by economic consultancy and research provider m.e Consulting. That report says that if Northport did expand as planned it could evolve to become nationally significant infrastructure.
