Mayor leads Timaru’s bid for Scott Base build
Timaru’s mayor wants the district to build New Zealand’s new Scott Base.
Nigel Bowen put the district’s hand up yesterday saying Timaru’s port had the perfect mix of facilities for the $344 million project that involves the fabrication of the buildings and a new windfarm prior to their shipping to Antarctica.
The Government committed the money in the latest Budget and estimates predict there will be 170 jobs involved at the peak of the construction, and more than 700 jobs over six years.
Bowen said Primeport Timaru had ready access to an extremely capable trades and servicing sector to fully support the project lead and Government to successfully deliver the major project.
‘‘Timaru’s Primeport is a resilient, well-resourced and wellconnected port which has the room to grow, and is the perfect home for this kind of project,’’ he said.
‘‘Investments of this scale shouldn’t default to the major cities just because that’s what’s always happened,’’ Bowen said.
‘‘There is knowledge, skills and talent throughout Canterbury that can be harnessed to help deliver the new long-term home for Aotearoa in the Ross Dependency.
‘‘We’re hoping following the billions of dollars the Government has invested in our cities, they take this opportunity to facilitate investment and growth in a smaller area with immense potential,’’ Bowen said.
The current Scott Base, built in the early 1980s and made up of 12 buildings, will be replaced with three interconnected buildings and will accommodate up to 100 people.
The new base will consist of an accommodation, dining and welfare building, a science and management building and an engineering and storage building.
The base is one of the major contributors to climate science in New Zealand and globally.
‘‘As a coastal community we’re already seeing some effects of climate change up close, so it would be a great opportunity for our community to make a real physical contribution to climate science in this way,’’ Bowen said.