29 January 2025
OIAD-1441
Jonathan Mason
[FYI request #29707 email]
Tēnā koe Jonathan
Thank you for your email of 9 January 2025 requesting the fol owing under the Official
Information Act 1982 (the Act):
I am requesting full release of information relating to the application to include FTA159
Delmore in the Fast Track Bil (2024), including but not limited to:
1) the basis for the decision to include this project in the Bil ;
2) all submissions made by Vineway Ltd;
3) the basis for assessing Vineway Ltd to be a suitable entity to undertake a project
deemed to be of National or Regional Importance and therefore bypassing all normal
regulatory safeguards;
4) all discussion of the information submitted by Vineway by the Fast-track Projects
Advisory Group;
5) the manner in which all information submitted to the Government by Vineway Ltd was
verified (e.g. site visit, third party analysis etc);
6)
the basis for deciding to redact the project location when the list of projects was
published by the Government on 20 December 2024.
As outlined in our letter dated 15 January 2025, part four of your request has been transferred to
the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) for response, as the agency
responsible for administering the Fast-track Projects Advisory Group (the Advisory Group).
Contextual information for reference:
The Fast-track Approvals Act 2024 (FTAA) was passed into law on 24 December 2024. The 149
projects listed in Schedule 2 of the FTAA, including Delmore, wil be able to apply for consent
through Expert Panels (the Panels) from 7 February 2025.
The Fast-track process streamlines consenting for infrastructure and development projects that
provide significant national or regional benefits by offering a consolidated, ‘one-stop-shop’
approach, ensuring more efficient decision-making.
Under the FTAA, Panels must seek comment from various parties, including relevant local
authorities and adjacent landowners. The Panels wil have the authority to make final decisions
on approvals for these projects and can impose conditions to manage environmental impacts.
The Ministry for the Environment (the Ministry) is responsible for the FTAA, while the
Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) wil provide secretariat and administrative support to
the Panels. Information on projects that have applied to Panels wil be made available on a new
Fast-track website that is due to go live on 7 February 2025.
PO Box 10362, Wel ington 6143 | Freephone 0800 499 700 | environment.govt.nz
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Response to your specific requests:
Briefings and advice regarding decisions on listed projects, including the paper considered by
Cabinet, are publicly available on the Ministry’s website at:
https:/ environment.govt.nz/what-
government-is-doing/cabinet-papers-and-regulatory-impact-statements/fast-track-approval-listed-
projects/.
Vineway Limited’s application for the Delmore project, alongside the Ministry’s advice to the
Advisory Group about Delmore, can be found on the Ministry’s website at:
https://environment.govt.nz/acts-and-regulations/acts/fast-track-approvals/fast-track-
projects/delmore/.
Therefore, I am refusing Questions 1, 2, and 3 under section 18(d) of the Act, as the information
requested is publicly available. Please note that material has been carefully considered under
the provisions of the Act. In some cases, information may be withheld under section 9 of the Act,
but only where necessary and where the public interest in disclosure does not outweigh the need
to withhold, as outlined in section 9(1).
In response to Question 5, the Ministry processed applications, undertook initial checks
(including eligibility and ineligibility), and summarised any consultation undertaken by applicants
or central government. In addition, the Ministry summarised any relevant Treaty settlement
provisions and the impacts of a project on Māori development and local Post Settlement
Governance Entity settlement priorities.
Assessment of project applications was reliant on the information provided by applicants
themselves. Applicants are required to certify that the information given in applications is true
and correct. This approach aligns with normal practice for most types of applications, and the
149 projects listed in Schedule 2 of the FTAA wil be able to apply for consent through Expert
Panels (the Panels) from 7 February 2025.
Regarding Question 6, the Ministry has publicly released the project location for the Delmore
project in the documentation linked above. We have reviewed our records and cannot identify
any instances where the project location for Delmore was redacted in publicly released material.
If you have identified specific documentation or instances suggesting otherwise, we would
appreciate it if you could share the details with us. This wil enable us to investigate the matter
thoroughly and address any concerns.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Of ice of the Ombudsman of my
decision to withhold information relating to this request, in accordance with section 28(3) of the
Act. The relevant details can be found on their website at:
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz.
Please note that due to the public interest in our work the Ministry for the Environment publishes
responses to requests for official information on our
OIA responses page shortly after the
response has been sent. If you have any queries about this, please feel free to contact our
Ministerial Services team
: [email address].
Nāku noa, nā
Stephanie Frame
Manager, Fast Track
Manatū Mō Te Taiao | Ministry for the Environment
PO Box 10362, Wel ington 6143 | Freephone 0800 499 700 | environment.govt.nz
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