January to December 1996

Overseas Investment Commission Decisions

Commentary and Index prepared by CAFCA

Contents

January 1996 decisions

New law comes into effect

Hansol of Korea forms East Cape joint venture with Ngati Porou

Bank of Scotland’s Countrywide Bank, bids for Housing Corp mortgages

Auckland Regent Hotel sold to Singapore company

U.S. investment fund T/A Pacific, buys 35% of Dairy Brands

Gulf USA Corporation takes full control of Gulf Resources Pacific Ltd

Mitsui leaves Greymouth Coal Ltd, sells shares to Kanematsu

525 hectares in Bay of Islands to Canadian for tourism and forestry

Land for forestry

Other rural land sales

Internal restructuring: CDL and Te Maori Lodges

February 1996 decisions

Only independent drug manufacturer sells "Karitane" to baby food pariah

Skellerup, 25th biggest company in Aotearoa, now an overseas company

Blue Star Group sold to US Office Products Company

British Telecom takes 25% of Clear

Tiongs take complete control of Regal Salmon

Hectare of Auckland CBD land sold to Singapore company for $12m

More land bought to extend the Waihi gold mine

Land for Forestry

Other rural land

Internal Restructuring

March 1996 decisions

GWR of the UK buys Independent Broadcasting Group from Brierleys

Unilever buys Helene Curtis; may close Christchurch plant

Sovereign Assurance buys FAI Metropolitan Life

Blue Star buys U-Bix

Wang U.S.A. and Blue Star both get approval to take over Wang New Zealand

Leading computer software retailer, Essentially, sold to Spectrum of U.S.A.

Trans Tasman Properties buys Auckland Finance and Trade Centre

Aluminium business sold by Comalco and AHI to Fletchers, retaining land

Tranz Rail buys land from New Zealand Post for Southdown Freight Terminal

Geothermal power station at Rotokawa for Power New Zealand

More land for mining at Waihi and Waitekauri Valley

Macraes buys 226 hectares more land for gold mining at Macraes Flat, Otago

Land for forestry

Other rural land

Internal restructuring

April 1996 decisions

Radio New Zealand commercial network sold to O’Reilly

IES International of the U.S.A. sets up shop

Macquarie Gilt Edge starts up

Waste Management buys 29 hectares of Redvale land for extending landfill

Power New Zealand and Tauhara geothermal power station joint venture

Australian Pratt Group subsidiary buys seven hectares of land for factory

Tiongs sell 23 hectares of Albany land to St Lukes for shopping centre

Land for forestry

Other rural land

May 1996 decisions

Westpac takes over Trust Bank

Skellerup of the U.S.A., sells CablePrice to Hitachi of Japan

Rockgas takes over LPG supply business of BP Oil New Zealand

Electronic Mail International increases shareholding in Triumph Industries

Probo Pacific (Sweden) takes 50% of Raffles (Singapore) for $2

Sovereign Financial Services buys S.H. Lock (NZ) Ltd of the U.K.

Taiwanese buy 1 Queen St, Virgin Islands company buys 125 Queen St

UK drug firm buys farm to breed transgenic ewes with human protein in milk

Japanese-owned Kinloch Station expands for tourist development

Singaporean owners of Gulf Harbour project at Whangaparaoa reorganise

Land for forestry

Other rural land

June 1996 decisions

TransAlta of Canada completes takeover of Wellington’s electricity supply

Murdoch gets approval to buy up to 32% of Sky TV

News Corporation gets approval to buy Ansett New Zealand

Noel Leeming merges with Bond and Bond

Susan sells herself: National Media Corp. (U.S.A.) buys Prestige Marketing

US Office Products can buy remaining 49% of Blue Star Group

Emerald Capital of Canada controls ChCh Gondola and Rainbows End

DEC International of the U.S.A. buys InterAg from Carter Holt Harvey

Wharepapa Station sold to U.S. owners of Wharekauhau Station and Lodge

KIPT buys Bellsouth Centre from Auckland Regional Services Trust

Internatio Muller of the Netherlands buys Swift New Zealand from Burns Philp

Macraes Mining buys 2,260 hectares more land at Macraes Flat, Otago

Land for forestry

Other rural land sales

Shell and BP form joint venture for fuel storage terminal in Wellington

July 1996 decisions

Blue Star takes Whitcoulls

Power New Zealand takes controlling interest in BOP Electricity

Rockgas takes over Liquigas from BP

Universal Homes of Singapore buys SBSA Mortgages for $100

British Telecom sets up shop

Wanganui District Council sells leasehold land to U.S. NDG Pine for timber mill

MRGC restructures its ownership

Other land for forestry

Other rural land sales

August 1996 decisions

Works Corp privatised to Paul Y-ITC (Hong Kong) and Kinta Kellas (Malaysia)

More of Gourmet Direct, Ernest Adams’ 47% owner, to Mega First of Malaysia

Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz merge

Warner-Lambert buys assets from Glaxo Wellcome in global agreement

TransAlta merges Capital Power and EnergyDirect

Kiwi Income Property Trust buys half share of "The Palms" mall, Christchurch

Land for forestry

Other rural land sales

September 1996 decisions

First refusal for six years: "lifestyle" land acquisition declined

Forestry Corporation privatised to Chinese government/Fletchers/Brierley’s

Works Civil Construction privatised to Paul Y ITC Construction of Hong Kong

Skellerup sells its share of salt monopoly to Ridley of Australia

Blue Star buys PC Direct Ltd

Georgie Pie dies; cadaver sold to MacDonald’s

Singatronics of Singapore buys Auckland Airport Travelodge for $28.2 million

Malaysian company buys Duncan and Davies’ Taranaki plant nursery business

Richina consortium increases shareholding in Mainzeal Group

Queenstown’s Millbrook Country Club of Japan rearranges its ownership

Aral Property of Singapore and Hong Kong buys Pacific Plaza, Whangaparaoa

Milburn buys more land for quarry in Hawkes Bay

Sealed Air Corporation of the U.S.A. buys 4 hectares on Waitemata foreshore

Other land for forestry

Other rural land sales

October 1996 decisions

INL gets approval to buy all of Sky Network

Rand Merchant Bank of South Africa wants to deal in electricity

CS First Boston takes over Feltex Carpets

Heinz-Wattie of U.S.A. buys Shortland Cannery

Coca-Cola Amatil to buy PET bottle manufacturing from Carter Holt

Shriro of Hong Kong takes fuller control of Transmark Corporation

Harvey Norman Group prepares to set up shop

One U.S. company to another: Borden packaging sells to AEP

P&O has lease on Otahuhu land belonging to James Kirkpatrick Ltd

Bridgestone Japan (Firestone) takes 100% of Bridgestone Tyres (NZ) Ltd

Walter Bau-AG of Germany readies for Britomart construction

Waihi gold mining companies buy three more blocks of land in Waihi

Housing development of 200 dwellings at Gulf Harbour, Whangaparaoa

Land for forestry

Other rural land sales

November 1996 decisions

O’Reilly buys another radio network: NZ Radio Network buys Prospect

Skellerup of U.S.A. sells Levene Paint Manufacturing to ICI

Broadway Industries sell Chemstock Animal Health to IAMA, Australia

Bakery materials division of Abels sold to Swiss/Liechtenstein firm

Kiwi Income Property Trust buys four CBD properties from General Accident

St Lukes buys cnr Customs/Albert St, Auckland, from Auckland City Council

Housing subdivision of 67 ha. at Kelly’s Cove, Auckland

Industrial Subdivision by Tiongs in North Harbour, Auckland

New Zealand Land of Singapore buys rest of Greenstone Lodge, Queenstown

North Wiri Quarry, containing Waahi Tapu land, bought by Milburn

Wilbow Corporation buys more land for subdivision

Land for forestry

Other rural land sales

December 1996 decisions

Fletchers sell Hikurangi Forests to Glenealy of Malaysia to pay for ForestCorp

St Lukes buys Riccarton Mall

U.S.A./Europe consortium buys Mainguard Packaging of Christchurch

McCains of Canada buys Grower Foods Ltd in Hawkes Bay

Triangle Refrigeration of Australia merges with McAlpine Refrigeration

Land purchases totalling 408 ha. at Earnscleugh, Central Otago, for gold mine

Other land for forestry

Other rural land sales

Siemens and GEC rearrange ownership of GPT Finance (NZ) Ltd

 

Numbers of deleted or released decisions before appeal