Mr Jones announced a $2.2million loan from the Regional Infrastructure Fund for Ocean Beach during a tour of the site near Bluff yesterday.
The site aims to be an aquaculture centre of excellence and future tourism and hospitality hub at the southern tip of New Zealand.
During the tour, Mr Jones tasted Bluff gin, learned more about the whitebait and paua farm and saw the site where a new salmon farm will be built.
The loan would go towards its $6.3m project to upgrade infrastructure at the site, he said.
He was impressed with the facility and said the region had the potential to play an important part in the government’s goal to reach $3b in sales by 2035.
The Beyond 2025 Southland regional long-term plan, developed by Great South,
proposed to expand aquaculture in Southland to a $1b industry by 2035, contributing a third of the country’s overall goal.
Mr Jones said he believed this would be possible if the applications were via the fast-track legislation.
"It’s not a Southland challenge, it’s a New Zealand challenge, because a lot of our industries are capital starved.
"We’re changing the overseas investment rules to make it easier for interests such as Singapore ... so they can collaborate and invest money in the regions and, hopefully in the future, with the successful recipients of fast-track permits.
"The aquaculture product ... sells itself.
"You don’t need to really spend an inordinate amount of time hocking it off ... it just rushes out the door.
"What we felt was the statutory processes had become so protracted and entangled under regulatory thickets."
He hoped this, along with the recent three fast-track project investments announcements for the region, would be followed by further funding.
"I look forward to coming back again and helping turbocharge ... the entirety of the South Island."
Ocean Beach managing director Blair Wolfgram said the investment was a vote of confidence in Southland’s ability to lead the way in sustainable aquaculture excellence for New Zealand.
Ocean Beach head of operations Mogana Manivannan said when the project started the site employed 12 people, which had grown to 60.
He felt the potential for the business was "unlimited".
