A release from the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) yesterday said Oceana had acquired freehold interest in 575ha of land on Hartfield Rd near Clyde for an undisclosed sum, saying Oceana wanted to secure part of the land for mining and it was "necessary to purchase the whole property".
"The applicant [Oceana] will lease out the land for farming purposes for some years before beginning to mine any of the land," the statement said.
Oceana Gold, whose chief executive of five years, Steve Orr, resigned a week ago, did not make a disclosure to the markets yesterday on the purchase.
Vice-president of investor relations Darren Klinck was contacted in Melbourne yesterday but declined to comment on the purchase as it "was not a material event".
Benefits for New Zealand considered by the OIO under the Overseas Investment Act 2005 included increased export earnings and productivity and the enhanced viability of other Oceana investments.
The company has been operating the Macraes mine for 19 years and has processed more than 2.5 million ounces of gold.
Oceana is headed for a record 280,000-300,000 ounces of gold production from its three mines at Macraes in East Otago and on the West Coast this year.
However, it has booked consecutive annual losses totaling $US123.7 million ($NZ200.2 million) and mothballed its gold/copper development mine in the Philippines for lack of funding.
