Hon Chris Bishop
Minister for Infrastructure

From today the Government’s new national infrastructure agency is up and running, acting as the shopfront for investors into public infrastructure and the centre of expertise on funding and financing for infrastructure projects, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop says.

“National committed to a national infrastructure agency during the 2023 election campaign, and the establishment of the agency is part of the National-New Zealand First coalition agreement. It’s also a commitment in the Government’s ambitious Q4 plan,” Mr Bishop says.

“The new agency will be known as National Infrastructure Funding and Financing Limited (NIFFCo), to reflect its important role in infrastructure funding and financing, a crucial element of addressing New Zealand’s longstanding infrastructure deficit.

“Delivering infrastructure for New Zealand’s future is a critical part of the Government’s plan to increase growth and productivity across all sectors.

“Having NIFFCo up and running is a key step towards a well performing infrastructure system. There is a clear gap inside government when it comes to utilising private finance and complex procurement models. NIFFCo will fill that gap and help improve the foundations of our infrastructure system.

“National Infrastructure Funding and Financing Limited has been repurposed from Crown Infrastructure Partners (CIP), an existing infrastructure entity focused on infrastructure fund administration. Most notably, CIP rolled out the Ultra-Fast Broadband (UFB) programme to 87 per cent of the population, making it the largest co-funded public-private infrastructure initiative in New Zealand.

“National Infrastructure Funding and Financing Limited will:

• Provide specialised expertise in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) and capital markets, building the Crown's internal capability and ensuring consistency and development of long-term relationships with the market.
• Provide agencies with financial and commercial support and expertise when developing business cases and procuring large scale projects that may benefit from private finance or the use of a PPP model.
• Receive and evaluate market-led proposals on behalf of the Crown, in line with guidance.
• Connect overseas investors and lenders into New Zealand’s infrastructure pipeline.
• Continue to deliver on CIP’s existing programmes of work.

“I announced the establishment of NIFFCo at the Building Nations conference in August, alongside progress on the 30-year National Infrastructure Plan. This is another step on the journey of tackling our infrastructure deficit.”

“As part of creating National Infrastructure Funding and Financing Limited, the Government has also taken the opportunity to clarify roles and responsibilities within the infrastructure system. The Infrastructure Commission will focus on long-term strategy including the development of the 30-year National Infrastructure Plan. Crown Infrastructure Delivery (previously named Rau Paenga) will help deliver infrastructure projects for low-capability central government agencies.

“The inaugural chair of NIFFCo is Mark Binns, who has been chair of CIP since June 2018. He is joined on the Board by Alan Dent, Chris Gudgeon, and Mei Fern Johnson. Further Board appointments will be made in the new year to strengthen the capability and governance of this important organisation.”

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