Latest news with #NewZealandInfrastructureCommission
Techday NZ
28-07-2025
- Business
- Techday NZ
NZ civil construction sector faces confidence drop, workforce shortage
New research from Civil Contractors New Zealand and Teletrac Navman shows that New Zealand's civil construction industry is contending with a drop in business confidence and shrinking workforce numbers, but many businesses remain focused on finding solutions. The 2025 Construction Industry Survey, now in its ninth edition, compiles feedback from sector professionals and reveals a mixed picture. Of those surveyed, 16 percent reported a positive business outlook - a significant decrease from 50 percent in 2021. Alongside this decline, 42 percent of businesses reported downsizing or laying off staff over the past 12 months, with 73 percent citing a lack of work as the industry's predominant challenge, compared to just 15 percent in 2021. Despite the difficult operating environment, almost half (47 percent) of civil construction businesses expressed confidence in their ability to withstand and overcome current challenges. Many are responding by investing in new technology and climate-resilient projects with the aim of supporting business growth and meeting community needs. Government pipeline concerns Industry leaders point to uncertainty surrounding the project pipeline as a critical factor in declining business confidence. Alan Pollard, Chief Executive at Civil Contractors New Zealand, said: "New Zealand's civil construction industry is facing a confidence crisis where a lack of work, and uncertainty is placing the long-term health of the industry at risk, but there is plenty of hope on the horizon." The National Infrastructure Pipeline, managed by the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, currently forecasts projects worth USD $207 billion across central government, local government and private sector contributions. Despite this, Pollard says there is often a gap between forecasted investments and projects reaching the market, with many projects delayed for prolonged periods. He emphasised the need for more transparent communications regarding project opportunities and more stable investment to provide certainty for infrastructure construction workers. The impact is particularly pronounced for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which make up 60 percent of the sector. The survey found that 27 percent of SMEs expect their revenues to decrease in 2025, which is three times the number from the 2021 survey. Pollard continued: "It's never been more important for central and local government to step up with a clearer, more consistent and visible pipeline of infrastructure construction and maintenance work, rather than just announcements. We see this playing a central role in strengthening business confidence, helping to keep skilled workers in the industry, and ensuring we're ready to meet not just today's needs, but also New Zealand's future infrastructure needs." Skills and workforce challenges The survey highlights that human resources and skills are a significant issue. Seventy-three percent of respondents reported a lack of available work for contractors, up from only 15 percent in 2021. This environment increases the risk of skilled professionals seeking employment overseas or leaving the sector to maintain income security. Looking ahead, 85 percent of civil construction professionals believe that clarity around central and local government projects is needed to restore business confidence and financial stability in the sector. Climate change and infrastructure Resilience to climate change is another matter raised by respondents. Fifty-eight percent are not confident in New Zealand infrastructure's current ability to withstand climate change. Civil construction professionals are unified in calling for greater investment in resilience infrastructure, such as seawalls and stopbanks, seeing these developments as essential for community safety during flood or fire events. Role of technology Technology is increasingly being recognised as a strategy for business efficiency and growth in New Zealand's civil construction sector. More than 40 percent of those surveyed indicated that adopting technology could help improve efficiency and manage ongoing challenges. Over half of business leaders say that mandated technology assists them in securing new work, indicating a shift in how projects are approached. James French, Construction Industry Specialist ANZ at Teletrac Navman, said: "While confidence in the sector is under pressure, our research with CCNZ clearly shows that businesses that embrace digital tools and connected platforms are positioning themselves to win work and navigate today's industry uncertainty. Technology isn't just a nice-to-have for civil construction businesses – It's become a business imperative. This year's Civil Construction Industry Report revealed that 60 percent of business leaders in the sector say that mandated technology helps them win work, so its clear technology is playing a key role in building a more resilient and competitive civil construction industry." The annual report by Teletrac Navman and Civil Contractors New Zealand aims to provide data-driven insights to support the sector as it navigates changing market conditions and prepares for future demands. The 2025 survey was based on 172 responses from civil construction professionals gathered between May and June 2025.
Newsroom
26-06-2025
- Business
- Newsroom
NZ's infrastructure paradox: When spending more delivers less
Comment: A peculiar economic paradox appears to govern infrastructure development in modern New Zealand: the more we spend on infrastructure, the less we seem to get for it. This uncomfortable reality was a key takeaway from last week's launch of the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission's Draft National Infrastructure Plan.
CNA
25-06-2025
- Business
- CNA
New Zealand draft infrastructure plan outlines need for more hospitals, electricity
WELLINGTON: New Zealand on Wednesday (Jun 25) released a draft 30-year national infrastructure plan, which highlighted a need for the country to invest more in hospitals and electricity production and to prepare to spend more on responding to national disasters. The plan aims to improve infrastructure preparations and introduce a less politically driven approach to infrastructure investment, which critics say has been impacted by electoral cycles with the stop-start results being costly for large projects. 'We want the National Infrastructure Plan to help build common ground about our areas of need and what is affordable for Kiwis, giving the Government of the day guidance for making decisions about infrastructure,' said Geoff Cooper, chief executive of the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission. The draft plan said the country needed to establish affordable and sustainable funding, make it easier to build new infrastructure, prioritise maintaining current infrastructure and assess the readiness of projects before they are funded. While New Zealand was in the top 10 per cent of the OECD in its infrastructure spend as a percentage of gross domestic product, it was not getting the returns it should, it added. To meet demand, annual capital investment would need to increase from around NZ$20 billion (US$12 billion) today to slightly more than NZ$30 billion by the 2050s, according to the plan. The New Zealand government has outlined plans to boost the infrastructure build in the country, and earlier this year hosted an infrastructure investment summit to promote foreign investment in the country's infrastructure. 'The Government is determined to improve New Zealand's infrastructure system and to work alongside the industry and other political parties to establish a broad consensus about what needs to change,' said Chris Bishop, Minister for Infrastructure.
Reuters
25-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
New Zealand draft infrastructure plan outlines need for more hospitals, electricity
WELLINGTON, June 25 (Reuters) - New Zealand on Wednesday released a draft 30-year national infrastructure plan, which highlighted a need for the country to invest more in hospitals and electricity production and to prepare to spend more on responding to national disasters. The plan aims to improve infrastructure preparations and introduce a less politically driven approach to infrastructure investment, which critics say has been impacted by electoral cycles with the stop-start results being costly for large projects. 'We want the National Infrastructure Plan to help build common ground about our areas of need and what is affordable for Kiwis, giving the Government of the day guidance for making decisions about infrastructure,' said Geoff Cooper, chief executive of the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission. The draft plan said the country needed to establish affordable and sustainable funding, make it easier to build new infrastructure, prioritise maintaining current infrastructure and assess the readiness of projects before they are funded. While New Zealand was in the top 10% of the OECD in its infrastructure spend as a percentage of gross domestic product, it was not getting the returns it should, it added. To meet demand, annual capital investment would need to increase from around NZ$20 billion ($12 billion) today to slightly more than NZ$30 billion by the 2050s, according to the plan. The New Zealand government has outlined plans to boost the infrastructure build in the country, and earlier this year hosted an infrastructure investment summit to promote foreign investment in the country's infrastructure. 'The Government is determined to improve New Zealand's infrastructure system and to work alongside the industry and other political parties to establish a broad consensus about what needs to change,' said Chris Bishop, Minister for Infrastructure. The finalised plan is expected to be released at the end of the year and will be discussed by parliament in early 2026. ($1 = 1.6565 New Zealand dollars)
Scoop
25-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Have Your Say On 30-year Plan For NZ's Infrastructure Investment
The New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, Te Waihanga, has revealed its first look at how New Zealand needs to invest to get the roads, hospitals, schools and other infrastructure we will rely on to live and thrive over the next 30 years. The Commission's draft National Infrastructure Plan looks at the infrastructure New Zealand already has and how factors like an ageing population and climate change will drive future demands. It shows what we should be spending and makes recommendations for how we can get better results from this investment. Te Waihanga CE Geoff Cooper says that compared to other high-income countries, New Zealand already spends a greater percentage of GDP on infrastructure but is in the bottom 10 percent for the value we get from that spend. "To ensure New Zealanders are getting the infrastructure services they need, it's critical that we get smarter about how we invest. "A National Infrastructure Plan can help, showing where our infrastructure dollar will have the greatest impact in meeting New Zealand's future needs," says Cooper. We need to be ambitious "Some of our most essential infrastructure has already been built, but we're not always good at looking after it. Overall, we should be spending around 60 percent of our infrastructure investment on looking after what we've already got," says Cooper. The way we invest in new infrastructure will also need to change: We will need more investment in our hospitals. An ageing population means a greater need for hospitals. At the same time, we'll see a relative reduction in demand in the need for new schools and university buildings. We will need to invest more in electricity. To reach net zero by 2050 we need to increase electricity use by over 60 percent, boosting electricity-using industries and replacing fossil fuel use across the economy. We will see changes in how we invest in land transport. Investment in land transport - our roads, public transport, and railways - has increased over the past 20 years. In many parts of the sector, the pace of investment is expected to moderate as the population ages and the relative importance of income growth as a demand driver eases. The cost of responding to natural hazards will rise as we build more infrastructure to higher standards and bring forward renewals following a rising prevalence of extreme weather events. Improving our infrastructure planning "As we have heard from many in the sector, infrastructure policy and investment has experienced a lot of churn in recent electoral cycles. This perceived 'stop-start' approach can be costly for large projects and ongoing investment programmes. "The draft Plan provides recommendations on how we can get a more consistent and affordable approach and clear the way for delivering the infrastructure we need. It also makes recommendations on how we can better prioritise taking care of what we've got and optimise maintenance cycles so that we have more for new infrastructure. These changes can give the sector the certainty it needs to plan ahead, improve productivity, and create the jobs needed to maintain and deliver our infrastructure," Cooper says. Identifying projects that can make a difference The draft Plan shares the results of the first round of the Infrastructure Priorities Programme (IPP). The IPP takes proposals through an independent process to prove they offer bang for buck and meet a critical need. "While endorsed proposals aren't guaranteed funding, they give decision-makers confidence that these proposals have been independently assessed. "Proposals in the IPP were submitted to the Commission by central government, local government and the private sector. "We expect the list to grow as we receive submissions over future rounds," Cooper says. We want to hear from you "We want the National Infrastructure Plan to help build common ground about our areas of need and what is affordable for Kiwis, giving the Government of the day guidance for making decisions about infrastructure. "This is too important not to get right and too big a job to do alone. This is why we're seeking feedback now, while the Plan is still a draft. Tell us what you think and what we've missed." You can read more and have your say on our website ( this page will be updated from 10am Wednesday 25 June): Some key facts Over the last 20 years New Zealand's average spend on infrastructure is 5.8% of GDP. Crown investment as a share of GDP accounts for about 40% of this, or 2.5% of GDP. More recently, between 2010 and 2019, New Zealand spent more per capita than any other OECD country on infrastructure. The quality of our infrastructure lags, relative to what we spend on it. High-level comparisons suggest that New Zealand has among the lowest infrastructure spending 'bang for buck' in the OECD. We estimate that for most sectors, simply renewing and replacing what we have will consume the majority of our investment dollars over the next 30 years. For most sectors, this is 60% of infrastructure investment on average, but can be up to 80% in some sectors like education. After spending on renewals and replacements, we will have between 2% and 3% of GDP left over for new and improved infrastructure each year, or about $10 to $12 billion per year on average. For central government, this is between 0.5% and 1% of GDP. In dollar terms, this is about $3 to $4 billion per year on average across all types of infrastructure central government provides. The draft Plan is underpinned by a number of technical reports that have also been published on our website. The Commission has also released assessment information from round one of the Infrastructure Priorities Programme.
