| Decision | Consent Granted Section 12(b) Overseas Investment Act 2005 |
|---|---|
| Decision date | 3 February 2011 |
| Investment | An overseas investment in sensitive land, being the Applicant's acquisition of rights or interests in 100.0% of the shares of Auckland Aquarium Limited which owns or controls a leasehold interest in 0.0054 hectares of land at 23 Tamaki Drive, Orakei, Auckland. |
| Consideration | CONFIDENTIAL |
| Applicant | Merlin Entertainments Group Luxembourg Topco S.a.r.l Cayman Islands (29.80%) Denmark (31.63%) England (14.03%) Luxembourg (24.54%) |
| Vendor | Village Roadshow Holdings Pty Limited Australian Public (81.13%) Various overseas persons (6.77%) United States Public (5.58%) United Kingdom Public (3.94%) Asian Public (2.58%) |
| Background | The Applicant's acquisition (through its wholly owned subsidiary Merlin Entertainments (New Zealand) Limited) of Auckland Aquarium Limited's shareholding is part of a series of transactions whereby the Applicant will acquire various assets in Australia and New Zealand from the Vendor. The Vendor has decided to realise some of its business assets in the Australasian attractions market in order to reduce its level of borrowings. The Applicant regards a number of the Vendor's assets as prominent tourism attractions in Australasia that are complementary to its core business. The overseas investment transaction has satisfied the criteria in section 16 of the Overseas Investment Act 2005. The 'benefit to New Zealand' criterion was satisfied by particular reference to the following factors: Overseas Investment Act 2005 Overseas Investment Regulations 2005 |
| More information | David Hoare Russell McVeagh (Auckland) PO Box 8 AUCKLAND |