Author: Press Room

An aviary at a wildlife sanctuary in financial strife has had its doors stripped in a stoush over an unpaid bill for almost a quarter of a million dollars.Pūkaha Mt Bruce National Wildlife Centre on the border of Tararua and Wairarapa districts has issued an urgent plea for financial help, without which it faced imminent closure.At the heart of the plea was an invoice for an under-construction aviary for the endangered shore plover bird.Board co-chair Mavis Mullins said the breeding sanctuary needed to find $600,000 by the end of the week to avoid shutting its doors, after it was unable…

Air New Zealand has welcomed two new Airbus A321neo into its fleet, a move which the airline says will contribute an additional 70,000 seats into its network each year.Both A321neo hold up to 214 passengers, and are configured for flying to Australia and the Pacific Islands.Air New Zealand said the aircraft represents the latest innovation in narrowbody jet technology, offering improved efficiency and additional capacity to the airline’s fleet.The first A321neo arrival, ZK-NNH, is due to arrive in New Zealand tomorrow, and enter service in the coming weeks.The second aircraft will enter service in the next few months, the airline…

Pacific Edge has raised $16 million of new equity in a placement of new ordinary shares — $1 million more than it sought — after directors resolved to accept over-subscriptions. On Friday, the cancer diagnostics company announced a $20 million capital raise, saying it was about ensuring it had the cash reserves to capitalise on recent clinical and commercial milestones, grow in non-Medicare channels in the United States and regain Medicare coverage of its tests. It comprised a placement of $15 million of new ordinary shares offered to selected investors and an offer of $5 million of new shares to…

A Waikato share milker has been slapped with a $40,000 fine and 140 hours of community work after the council accused him of having dairy effluent repeatedly flow from a family farm into a waterway near Te Awamutu.Daniel Warren Lund appeared in the Hamilton District Court facing five charges under the Resource Management Act, according to the Waikato Regional Council. A spokesperson said compliance officers found effluent storage ponds overflowing into the tributary of the Puniu River on two separate occasions during inspections in 2022.”On another occasion, they found effluent ponding and runoff from an irrigator. An abatement notice that…

Stuff and TradeMe have announced a merger. In a statement, the companies say TradeMe will take a 50% stake in Stuff Digital – which publishes the website stuff.co.nz and ThreeNews. Stuff’s mastheads – The Post, the Press and the Waikato Times. Its events business and Neighbourly are not included in the deal. Last year the media company was divided in two – Stuff Digital and Masthead Publishing, which runs newspaper brands and their own websites. In February this year Boucher changed her holdings in Stuff Digital from being the owner of the one and only share to being the sole holder of one million…

Jonathan Joss, a voice actor best known for his work on the animated television series King of the Hill, was fatally shot near his Texas home, authorities said.Police were dispatched to a home in south San Antonio about 7pm Sunday (local time) on a shooting in progress call. When officers arrived at the scene, they found the wounded 59-year-old near the street.”The officers attempted life saving measures until EMS arrived. EMS pronounced the victim deceased,” San Antonio police said in a statement.Joss’ husband, Tristan Kern de Gonzales, confirmed the actor’s death to The Associated Press in a text. The two…

Stuff Digital, the publisher of one of the country’s major news websites, is set to become half-owned by Trade Me in a significant move in the media sector. The two companies jointly announced the deal this morning, saying it would close in the next few months. The value of the 50% stake being acquired was not disclosed. It comes on the same day as Stuff’s primary competitor, Herald-owner NZME, appears ready to settle an attempted boardroom coup at its annual general meeting.Stuff Group owner and publisher Sinead Boucher will chair a new board, with equal representation from both companies. A…

Power restrictions on the Tiwai Point smelter in Southland are being eased as hydro lakes levels have risen enough to ease fears of stretched power supplies this winter. An agreement between the New Zealand Aluminium Smelter (NZAS) near Bluff and main power supplier Meridian Energy has allowed production to be cut and electricity usage reduced to preserve hydro resources. “New Zealand’s hydro storage is looking much healthier than it was just a few weeks ago, so we are now confident regarding security of supply this winter.  As a result, we want NZAS to get back to business,” Meridian chief executive designate Mike…

Auckland War Memorial Museum has reopened this morning after its closure last month caused by the detection of asbestos.The museum had been closed since May 10 after asbestos was discovered on the roof and in a ceiling cavity in the original 1929 part of the building.The building is set to reopen in stages from today, with the first stage encompassing around two-thirds of the museum.Sections of the north side – including Te Marae Ātea Māori Court, Pacific Galleries and the Grand Foyer – will remain closed while asbestos remediation work continues.Air monitoring will be ongoing throughout the building to reassure…

All eyes are on the capital as a barometer of gains in the property market, with Wellington recording a sharp 12.9% year-on-year increase in average asking prices.New data from realestate.co.nz shows an increase in the average asking price for a home in six of New Zealand’s 19 regions.Wellington now asks almost $95,000 more on average when compared to May 2024, the second highest increase in the country.Realestate.co.nz chief executive Sarah Wood said Wellington was worth watching closely after months of subdued figures.”This lift could be early evidence of buyer confidence returning to the capital. A jump like this gives vendors…