OIAD-3608
21 December 2023
Stephen Prendergast
[email address] Tēnā koe Stephen
Thank you for your request to the Department of Conservation, received on 28 November
2023, in which you asked:
In response to OIA 3528 you supplied a letter to MBIEs preferred operators which
includes the text ".. we have been asked by the Voluntary Administrators to
commence processing a concession for the ski area's currently known as Whakapapa
and Turoa Skifields."
Can you please advise why this request was not considered an application, as you
advised no applications had been received?
Please note, we have not considered this to be a request under the Official Information Act
1982 (OIA), as it is a question about a document rather than a request seeking information.
However, we consider this matter can be easily clarified and have provided comment below.
The extract you have included above is not the correct quote from that letter. The full relevant
quote from letter in question, sent to Pure Tūroa Limited (PTL) in June 2023, states:
…we have been asked by the Voluntary Administrators for Ruapehu Alpine Lifts to
commence the process of processing a concession for the ski area’s currently
known as Whakapapa and Turoa skifields on Mt Ruapehu. While a formal decision
cannot be undertaken until we have completed iwi consultation, there is information
we can start to compile to assist this process. [my emphasis added].
This language reflects that no application had been received from PTL at that time, but that
the Department had instead been asked by the Voluntary Administrators to engage with PTL
to begin to prepare for a possible concession application being submitted in future. This type
of ‘pre-engagement’ is common for concession applications and helps to improve the
likelihood that any application, once submitted, will meet the relevant requirements of the
Conservation Act 1987.
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You are entitled to seek an investigation and review of my decision by writing to an
Ombudsman as provided by section 28(3) of the OIA. Please note that this letter (with your
personal details removed) may be published on the Department’s website.
If you would like to discuss this response with us, please contact
[email address] Nāku noa, nā
Rachael Jordan
Principal Advisor, Regulatory Services
Department of Conservation
Te Papa Atawhai
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