By Lucy Craymer and Melanie Burton
WELLINGTON, June 23 (Reuters) - New Zealand is fast-tracking gold projects and courting mining investors as soaring bullion prices revive a sector long in decline, testing the country's "100% Pure" brand as the government looks for ways to lift a weak economy.
New Zealand's gold production is on track to double by the mid-2030s to its highest in at least three decades, according to Reuters calculations, helped by two new projects already approved and a third awaiting
a final decision.
That would put the country on course to exceed the government's target of lifting annual mineral exports, including coal and silver, to NZ$3 billion ($1.8 billion) by 2035.
Miners see potential in the underexplored nation as its government acts to boost jobs amid near decade-high unemployment and weakening business sentiment. The country granted 163 new permits for prospecting, mining and exploring last year, up 16% from a year earlier, government data shows.
But the push is stirring concern among environmentalists and parts of the agricultural sector that a bigger mining footprint could damage the pristine, natural image projected in marketing for the country's tourist spots and exports.
The revival faces two major tests this year: the future of existing policies beyond a hotly contested November 7 election and whether a controversial project wins a final approval.
"New Zealand has been under-recognised as a mining jurisdiction for a long period of time," said Jake Klein, who founded Australia's No. 2 gold miner Evolution Mining, and chairs Endura Mining, whose Snowy River project is set to start production in December.
"The mining industry likes to discover new jurisdictions ... but it's going to be dependent on success and consistency of government policy," he added.
JOBS AND INVESTMENT PUSH
Resources Minister Shane Jones told Reuters the government, which last month slashed its economic growth forecast to 2.3% for next year, was committed to supporting the industry.
"Our economy needs every arrow in the economic quiver shot with amazing accuracy," he said.
Gold is a rare economic bright spot. Export revenues have nearly tripled in three years to NZ$1.83 billion, accounting for 2.3% of total goods exports compared with 0.9% in 2022.
To help revive a sluggish economy, New Zealand passed a law in late 2024 aimed at speeding approval times for selected major infrastructure, mining and energy projects to months from years. The fast-track consenting allows those developments to bypass some standard regulatory processes and limits public consultation and legal challenges.
The opposition Labour Party has said it would fix the law so environmental protections cannot be overridden.
Canadian-listed OceanaGold won approval under the fast-track process, and Santana Minerals is awaiting a decision under the streamlined system.
Snowy River is set to add 250 regional jobs and at least NZ$350 million annually to the country's export revenue, according to government estimates.
"If we can find New Zealanders working in mines in Australia who want to get back home, we'll hire them," Klein said.
New Zealand's biggest gold producer, OceanaGold, expects to invest NZ$1 billion at its Waihi North project, starting production in 2032. Its operations attract workers, including from Australia, who want to live regionally and spend days off "hunting or fishing or farming, or being with kids and family," Senior Vice President Alison Paul said.
Michael Gordon, a senior economist at Westpac, said while mining was highly productive, much of the benefit would flow to mine owners rather than transform the wider economy.
'RAVAGE AND PILLAGE' CONCERNS
The gold mining debate is sharpest in Central Otago, on New Zealand's South Island, where Australian-listed explorer Santana Minerals is awaiting consent for its Bendigo-Ophir gold project, with a decision due by October 29, 2026.
Santana Minerals CEO Damian Spring, a New Zealander who lives an hour's drive from the proposed mine, pointed to the high-paying regional jobs the mine would create.
"Responsible mining is not a contradiction in terms here. It’s a choice New Zealand is making," he said.
The proposed mine would contribute an average NZ$360 million a year to GDP and directly employ 351 people, according to government estimates. But it faces opposition from wineries, heritage and environmental groups.
Central Otago wine interests are concerned the open-cast mine could threaten water supplies and expose vineyards to airborne pollutants, undermining a premium wine industry built over decades.
Actor Sam Neill, who owns the Two Paddocks winery in Central Otago, warned that, if approved, Santana's mine could be followed by other miners.
"This would be disastrous. #ravageandpillage," he said in an emailed comment to Reuters.
Zoe Hawkins, an organiser with Natural Capital, which represents a broader group of locals and opposes Santana's project, said groups had only 20 working days to respond in the fast-track permitting system.
"I would really like to say that we do have a chance of stopping it. I think that the odds have really been stacked against us," she said.
(Reporting by Melanie Burton in Melbourne and Lucy Craymer in Wellington; Editing by Sonali Paul)
