[Non-English content] Good morning. It being 11:00 A.M., we start on time. I'd like to welcome you to the 38th annual meeting of South Port, and first introduce the board and the South Port leadership team. I'll go through. Nicola Greer, who is going to be taking over as Chair after this meeting, and myself. Then we've got nominated directors, Cassandra Crowley. In fact, they're lined up there. Peter Barker, Jacqui Nelson, and Murray Harrington. The leadership team, Derek Nind, our CEO, who was a director at this time last year. Geoff Finnerty, our Port General Manager. Yep, sorry. Looking over here. Lara Stevens, Chief Financial Officer. Frank O'Boyle, Infrastructure and Environment Manager. Jamie May, Commercial Manager. Helen Young, People and Safety Manager, and Hayden Mikkelsen, Container Operations Manager.
I won't mention everyone in the room, but just a few people who I would like to mention specifically. We've got Jeremy McPhail, the Chair and proxy holder for Environment Southland. He is joined by fellow Councillors Ewen Mathieson, Alastair Gibson, and Maurice Rodway. Chief Executive of Environment Southland, Stephen Hall. Scott Hamilton, who is an advisor to Environment Southland. I will mention three former directors who are lined up in front of me, including my predecessor as Chair, Michelle Henderson, who is now a very important customer as General Manager of the smelter, Rex Chapman, and Jeremy McLean. We have apologies from John Schol, he has just been online with us in a board meeting, but he's in the States, so can't be with us today. Heidi Rautjoki, is that right?
Who is our auditor, who, with flight disruptions, has not been able to get here. Are there any other apologies for the record? Right. Do we have any media here? Okay. In terms of proxies, there are 67 valid proxies in respect of 20,765,498 shares, representing 79.15% of the total shares on issue. I hold proxies in respect of 5,538,862 shares as Chair of the company at the meeting. In terms of further proxy holders, as I mentioned earlier, Jeremy McPhail, on behalf of Environment Southland, has 13,691,573, and the New Zealand Shareholders' Association, who has appointed Lara Stevens as proxy for 207,846 shares. Cassandra Crowley has been appointed as proxy by Marguerite Winfred Rule for 8,000 shares. Right. First item of business is to receive and consider the directors' report and financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2026.
I will address, then I'll ask Derek to address you as CEO. More formally. [Non-English content] Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for joining us here in Bluff and online for the 38th South Port New Zealand Annual Shareholders' Meeting for the financial year ended 30 June 2026. It's auspicious because we now look forward to celebrating in February of next year, the sesquicentennial anniversary of the establishment of the Bluff Harbour Board in 1877. To begin, I'd like to acknowledge my fellow directors, which I've just introduced you to, and the executive team, and our major shareholder, Environment Southland. You may be aware that Environment Southland sold down 14% of its shareholding earlier this month, which hopefully will promote better liquidity in the trading of South Port shares.
The financial year or fiscal year 2026 saw a change of CEO, and the appointment of Derek Nind, who you will hear from shortly. On behalf of the board, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank our previous Chief Executive, Nigel Gear, who completed his term as CEO in May this year, following more than 30 years with South Port, including eight and a half years as CEO. His leadership and commitment saw the company strengthen its operational, financial, and safety performance, whilst continuing to invest in strategic infrastructure to support regional growth. I'd also like to thank Port General Manager, Geoff Finnerty, for stepping in as interim CEO. We welcomed Derek as CEO in July of this year.
Originally from Southland, Derek brings extensive port sector experience to the role, having served previously as CEO of CentrePort, the Wellington Port Company, a Senior Executive at Lyttelton Port, Managing Director of 360 Logistics Group, and briefly, as I mentioned, as Independent Director of South Port. In some ways, he's come full circle, having grown up in Southland and having worked at South Port as the Business Development Manager 30 years ago. As previously advised, I will be retiring from the board today following 16 years of service to South Port, including the last three as Chair. The board has completed its succession planning, and I can confirm as of today that Nicola Greer will assume the role of Chair.
Following my resignation and Michelle Henderson's, as she returns to NZAS as General Manager, we welcomed two well-credentialed Directors in Jacqui Nelson and Peter Barker, subject to their election today. Following the resignation of Derek as a Director of South Port to take up his role as CEO, we recruited another strong candidate in Murray Harrington. All three have extensive business careers and have a connection to the region. As South Port has grown and matured in its business, we've stood up the People and Performance Committee, chaired by Cassandra Crowley, and have formalized the Health and Safety Panel as a board committee, chaired by Jacqui Nelson. This will strengthen the oversight of the Port's health and safety strategy, performance risk management and legal compliance, with a particular focus, as required by legislation now, on critical risks.
We also farewell our Intern Director, Sam Grant, who has been an observer with the board since 2025. This internship is part of our commitment to the Southland Corporate Governance Intern Programme, which aims to build governance capability in Southland. The candidate application selection process for our next intern is underway, and I'd like to thank Sam for his contribution, which has gone beyond what one might have expected from a young future Director. It's really pleasing to see the business in such good stead as we report today on another record performance underpinned by the strength of the Southland economy. Both cargo volumes and earnings increased materially, driven by higher agricultural activity, solid export demand, wind farm, project cargo, and improved NZAS throughput. As a regional infrastructure provider, South Port remains focused on supporting Southland's existing and emerging industries.
And it is very pleasing to see this lift in cargo volumes translate into a substantial increase in profit. In fact, the company achieved a record after-tax profit of NZD 16.11 million, up 21% on last year's result. Even on a normalized basis, excluding one-offs, net profit after tax was NZD 16.14 million, a 16.2% increase on previous year. This was driven by total cargo volumes increasing by 11.5% to 3.9 million tons, a significant uplift and record for the company. Similarly, container throughput hit record levels, increasing 18.5% to 66,000 TEUs, and Tiwai Wharf volumes were up 16.1% to 0.94 million tons, nearing historical levels. Total revenue was up 14% to NZD 71.8 million from NZD 63.3 million in the previous year.
The performance of South Port reflects the commitment, skill, and care of our people, and on behalf of the board, I thank all staff for the crucial contributions that they have made to the company's success and for the pride they take in supporting our customers, our community, and each other. The board values our people highly and remains focused on supporting them through strong health and safety practices, improved employment conditions, and in the current year, benefits such as health insurance for all permanent staff. Business growth has also affected infrastructure investment with a record spend in recent years on our asset management plan, including upgrades to the access bridge and the town wharf fuel berth infrastructure. Further capital was invested in growth projects, including expansion at the container terminal, additional warehousing, and modernization of the mobile plant.
The board has now embarked on a long-term planning exercise, and Derek will expand on this planning process shortly. It is likely that a replacement tug and mobile harbor crane will be required in the short to medium term, which are both significant items of capital spend. With a strong asset base, ongoing master planning, and an orderly leadership transition, South Port is well-positioned to continue supporting regional growth while delivering long-term value to shareholders. The board is pleased to declare a final dividend of NZD 0.205, taking the total dividend for the year to NZD 0.29 per share, up NZD 0.01 From last year. On that note, I hand over to our CEO, Derek Nind, to introduce himself further to you all and share his observations of the port to date.
[Non-English content] Good morning, everybody. As Philip mentioned, I am here in a different capacity today, and I feel privileged to stand up here in front of you as CEO of South Port. I began in late July this year, and one thing that has really significantly impressed me is the attitude, ability, and willingness of our staff. Over the past three months, I have witnessed consistently instances of our staff going above and beyond their own duties, stepping up to help in other departments without hesitation, which has impressed me immensely. I reiterate the Chair's sentiments that we could not have achieved these results without the hard work and dedication of all of our staff. As Philip said, I have worked in a few ports, so what I have seen here is a really, really impressive bunch of people doing a really, really good job.
With the rising cargo volumes to a record 3.96 million tonnes and container throughput reaching an all-time high of 62,000 TEUs, this level of growth will require additional staffing, and we are looking to fill about 21 positions over the next 12- 18 months as our growth continues. Our health and safety and wellbeing strategy was developed for our FY 2026, building on existing initiatives and practices, providing a clear framework for how health and safety is to be led, managed, and continuously improved across the organization through to 2029. Underpinned by four core pillars: leadership, culture and empowerment, risk management, critical risks, worker health, wellbeing, and psychological safety, capability, systems and engagement. The staff-led health and safety committee increased membership to 14 members, broadened the representation across the port, providing an open forum for discussion and feedback.
An example of this opportunity was the enhancement of the existing gym facilities, which resulted in developing a functional environment for wellbeing and the rehabilitation of staff. The staff take a real pride in the gym, and in fact, they all did the work inside it to really make it look great, and they continue to maintain it on a day-to-day basis. I believe that it's key not only to support our staff, but the community we belong to. South Port has in place some longstanding initiatives such as staff and community study scholarships. in FY 2026, South Port contributed more than NZD 80,000 sponsored local organizations, and we encourage our staff to be involved through volunteering in and around the community.
Biennial Port Open Day, held in March this year, highlighted the level of interest the community has in port operations, with large numbers turning up to tour the port despite unusual wet weather. This is another example of the commitment of our staff volunteering their time on a Sunday to host the community. Our care of the community extends to the environment we work and live in. Legislation currently before Parliament would mean South Port would no longer be a climate reporting entity. As such, this year, South Port did not produce a climate statement but chose to adopt a voluntary reporting model, which is integrated into our annual report. Included in this is significant work done by South Port's infrastructure and environmental team to develop a new discharge agreement with Environment Southland. The work began in 2021, with the current agreement in place since 2012.
The outcome of this work is a newly developed framework, which is expected to be fully operational by May 2027. Again, the details can be found in our annual report. We've been pleased to receive positive feedback from the Bluff community on their purchase and refresh, significant refresh, of 53-55 Gore Street, Bluff, comprising 9,500 sq m of land, which buildings previously used for cold storage. The facility's now been revamped. It's now known as the Bluff Freight Center, or the BFC, and is compliant for storing dairy product, and there's a considerable amount already in the store. Bulk cargo, as Philip mentioned, remains South Port's core trade, and it continues to deliver excellent growth, supported by the strength of the agricultural industry, forestry activity, project cargo associated with renewable energy developments, and of course, New Zealand Aluminium Smelters.
It is also pleasing to see growth in container volumes, which remains relatively steady at around 49,000 TEUs since 2020. However, in FY 2026, we saw a 26.5% increase on this average. The agricultural sector has been one of the areas of growth for the company over the last financial year, following on from the good growth in FY 2025. The port's well-balanced import and export mix is a strategic advantage, enabling backloading of efficiencies and enhancing overall margin performance for shipping companies. At this time, I am pleased to be able to provide you with the trade volumes for the first quarter of FY 2027, ending 30 September 2026. A total of 1,025,000 metric tons of cargo has been handled through the port, which represents a 13% increase and a good beginning for the new financial year.
As Southland's economy continues to flourish, South Port's role as a critical regional infrastructure becomes increasingly important. Our focus is on ensuring we have infrastructure capability and planning in place. We have enlisted Dennis Kögeböhn, a seasoned port expert with more than 20 years of experience from all continents, to assist us with our port planning exercise. This involves a review of current operations, identifying improvement opportunities, and assisting with developing a clear pathway for future growth.
This will be delivered in two stages, the first being optimization of the existing infrastructure and operations, and the second will consider long-term transformation opportunities that may require more significant capital investment. This exercise will assist us with prioritized opportunities considering a 20- 30 year horizon. Finally, from me, thank you to the board, to the staff of South Port, and the wider community for the great welcome and support I have received since I started here in July. I will now pass back to the Chair to discuss potential growth opportunities. Thank you.
Thank you, Derek. South Port enters the new financial year with a resilient, diversified trade base and strength across key regional industries. Whilst market conditions remain uncertain, trade volumes through the port for FY 2027 are expected to remain broadly in line with FY 2026. However, FY 2026 included non-recurring revenue from project cargo related to the handling of the wind farm imports that is not expected to be repeated in the current year, FY 2027, but is likely to recur next year in FY 2028. The port is actively monitoring several exciting regional growth opportunities, including, and I have listed them here, additional and extended wind farms in various stages of consent and construction. The most prospective is Mercury's Puke Kapo Hau wind farm, which has reached final investment decision, and where construction of its 40 turbines will start next month in November of 2026.
It's expected to be fully operational by the end of 2028. Agricultural projects such as Ngāi Tahu's Hananui, 1,285 hectare marine farm, which has now received fast-track consent. You'll all be aware of the proposed Datagrid data center near Makarewa in Southland, also having received fast-track consent, has commenced preliminary earthworks and signed a power purchase option agreement with Mercury. In that, Mercury took an equity stake in that project. A number of exciting early stage but large-scale projects including coal to urea conversion, hydrogen, green hydrogen production, and silicon refining. This is my last ASM as Chair of South Port. It's been a privilege and very conscious as the first non-Southland based Chair to guide this business.
When I joined the board 16 years ago, it's hard to remember that the company had just completed the negotiation of its 35-year Tiwai Wharf license out to 2043, and we're now over halfway through that period. Now as I complete my term, I'm pleased that we have reasonable certainty that NZAS will be part of our community for the foreseeable future. Moreover, with the upturn in agriculture, the maturing of our regional wood basket, and the acceleration of the renewable energy projects that I've just mentioned, we now have a quality problem and an exciting future. I really like the ownership model and governance framework we now have. We have local connections through Environment Southland, majority ownership, coupled with analyst and investor scrutiny through our New Zealand Stock Exchange listing and the recent share placement.
We've been able to attract an excellent mix of directors to our board and an experienced CEO with a strong local connection. The company is still small enough that it hasn't lost that Southland attitude of go the extra mile to service our customers. We have a maturing relationship with Mana Whenua, the Awarua Rūnaka, and we have a deeper and safer harbor. In short, we have all the ingredients for a bright future. The challenge for South Port and the wider Southland community is how to take advantage of it. That concludes the formal presentation. We now invite your questions. Sure.
I've got a question. I'm quite impressed by your report and in relation to the sustainability and the finance matters. We've got them up to date here, and so it's good to see. A couple of questions, though. Note on page 44 is saying that, "Sustainable procurement policy. Initial steps towards preparation of policy relating to sustainability have been undertaken," and under the energy management, you say, "Progress on energy initiatives, has been undertaken." I wonder if you can provide a little bit or something quite a little bit more detail on that. Also a comment on your progress towards carbon zero. You're growing pretty quickly. I wonder if that's something that you have in mind and how we might achieve that.
Thank you. I will ask Frank, are you happy to take that one?
Sorry.
Do you want to just come up and use the mic?
The second part, the energy side of things, over the last few years, we have been looking at a few initiatives, looking at solar panels. We have briefly looked at wind, and things like that. We still have not completed that. The first phase of the solar panel one is complete, does not quite work at the moment. We want to revisit that, mostly around the initial CapEx that is required. We have to test that a bit more over the next 12 months. In terms of the sustainability, the procurement policy, that is relatively new. We have just completed that in the last couple of months. That will be around how we procure some of our contracts, our suppliers, and things like that. That is not very mature just right now.
In terms of the overall sustainability strategy, we're currently looking at bringing in an external resource to help us out, a sustainability specialist, someone to just lift the profile of our sustainability strategy and give us a roadmap. I currently have no targets, but we're looking to develop a roadmap again over the next 12- 18 months around our sustainability strategy.
Any other questions?
I never got an explanation of the result of the inquiry into your pilot launch that went back up the hill nearly two years ago. I put down last year and you said there was some inquiry, but there's nothing ever said about it.
What would you like to hear?
Just what was the circumstances, any outcome of any inquiry into the major damage to your pilot launch?
Sure.
that went back up the hill. I've been doing it out there
Do you want to
for a particular year.
Geoff? Yeah.
I have a question for him.
The investigation was completed a while back now, and the outcome of that investigation was there was a loss of situational awareness by the pilot vessel skipper on the day, on that morning, which was the underlying cause of the incident.
Nobody at the wheel.
Oh, no, there was somebody at the wheel. There was definitely somebody at the wheel. There was, yeah. But as a result of that investigation, there's been a lot of changes to the way that we operate our vessels, the equipment that we use, the monitoring that we carry out. So a lot of good improvements that will remove the risk or reduce the risk of that ever occurring again. Yeah.
Any other questions? In which case, I move that the annual report for the year ended 30 June 2026 be received, approved, and adopted. Those in favor, please say aye. Those against. So that's carried. Okay, moving on to the next item of business, which is the election of directors. In accordance with the company's Constitution, Ms. CR Crowley retires by rotation and has offered herself for re-election to the board. I now call for a mover of the resolution that Cassandra Crowley be reappointed as a Director on the South Port board. Can I have a mover? Thank you. Second? Thank you. Thank you, Michelle. Those in favor, please say aye. Those against. There were 18,178,952 proxy votes in favor of this motion, and I declare Ms. Crowley duly elected. Cassandra, would you mind just saying a few words, please? Yeah. Yeah, for those online.
I'd like to thank shareholders for their support in my re-election. South Port is in a really exciting position as a company, and I look forward to contributing.
Thank you. Right. In accordance with Clause 25 of the Constitution and NZX Listing Rule 2.3.1, one valid nomination has been received from Environment Southland nominating Mr. Murray Harrington. Mr. Harrington now offers himself for election to the Board of Directors. Very excited to have you joining the board, Murray. I now call for a mover of the resolution that Murray Harrington be appointed as a Director on the South Port board. Thank you. Thank you, Jeremy. Seconder? Mr. Chapman. Those in favor, please say aye. Those against. There were 18,151,760 proxy votes in favor of this motion, and I declare Mr. Harrington, Murray, duly elected and ask you to say a few words.
[Non-English content] I am really proud to be a Director of South Port. I did grow up down here, as some people from the surname, don't hold it against me, may recognize. I have been living in Christchurch for a long time, and all around the world. I do a lot in infrastructure, so really excited given what's happening in Southland right now to be joining the board. Thank you for your support and look forward to working with you. Cheers.
Thank you, and congratulations, Murray. We had two Directors who were co-opted by the board to fill casual vacancies during the year, Mr. Peter Barker and Mrs. Jacqui Nelson. We do this individually, so I now call for a mover of the resolution that Mr. P.A. Barker be appointed as a Director on the South Port board. Thank you. Thank you, Jeremy. Second it. Jeremy McLean, thank you. Those in favor, please say aye. Those against. There were 18,161,868 proxy votes in favor, and I declare Mr. Peter Barker duly elected. Maybe Peter, from the West Island, you could have a few words.
Thank you, Chair, and good morning, shareholders. I would firstly like to thank you for your support. You serve on a board, and it is with a great deal of humility and excitement that I accept the position, and I look forward to working with you all. We have a great future, and I very much look forward to being a part of it. Thank you.
Thank you, Peter. Despite my comment, he also has a place in Wanaka, so he is a local. The next person is Jacqui Nelson. Mrs. J.M. Nelson. I now call for a mover for the resolution that Mrs. J.M. Nelson be appointed as a Director on the South Port board. Thank you. Thanks, Jeremy. Seconder? Rex Chapman. Thank you. Those in favor say, "Aye." Those against. Carried. There were 18,188,401 proxy votes in favor of this resolution. I declare you, Jacqui, duly elected and ask if you would like to say a few words.
[Non-English content] Jacqui Nelson. It is a pleasure to be here this morning. I am a Murihiku girl from way back. Grew up in Lumsden. Father, local stock agent there. Mum did the accounts at the local transport company. Any opportunity to get back home is hugely appreciated by me. I have had the privilege of participating as an independent director since February. Absolutely loving it. Different sector, lots of things to learn. I am just very excited with the opportunity to contribute to the further growth and development of the board. Thank you for your support.
I can say this as the outgoing chair, I think we are blessed to have directors of the caliber of not only the existing board members, but the ones you have just elected. The likes of Jacqui, who had a stellar career at Contact Energy, and Peter Barker has been a CFO of two ASX listed companies. For them to choose to join the board here with those local connections, I think is really good, and it reflects the health of the company. The next agenda item is the auditor's remuneration. In accordance with Section 19 of the Port Companies Act and Section 207S of the Companies Act 1993, the Office of the Auditor-General continues in office as auditor.
I call for a mover and a seconder that the directors be authorized to fix the fees and expenses of Deloitte Limited, who acts as agent for the Comptroller and Auditor General. Could I have a Thank you, Jeremy. Moved. Michelle Henderson seconded. Those in favor, please say, "Aye." Those against. There were 18,188,315 proxy votes in favor of this resolution, so it is passed. Now, most important issue on the agenda, directors' remuneration. That the maximum aggregate sum available for payment to non-executive directors for each financial year commencing 1 July 2026 be increased from NZD 562,000 to NZD 615,000, a 9.4% increase, such sum to be divided between the non-executive directors as they determine. Could I have a mover for this resolution, please? Thank you, Jeremy. Seconded? Thank you, Rex. Those in favor, please say, "Aye." Those against. Carried.
There were 18,124,758 proxy votes in favor of this resolution, and the motion is passed. We move on to general business. Are there any items of general business? We do have a question from a shareholder. "Why is it not compulsory for all directors to have one year of fees for directorship to be used to purchase shares in their first year as a director? That way they have skin in the game." It is a good question. I think, particularly in Australia, there is a developing model for directors to have shares in the company. When I joined the board, I raised this as an issue, and I recall being told by the then chair that it creates a conflict of interest to have shares, and I think we have moved on from that.
Whether it should be compulsory, I think is a moot point, but it is really up to individuals, I think as we have seen it. It is quite hard to actually find a period where you feel comfortable buying shares. It is not compulsory, but it is something that I think the board will continue to examine, and actually individual directors may well take that decision on their own initiative. I think that is the answer for the moment.
I will pass on to Nicola. But as the Chair, I think today it is a landmark day for Southland to have a female Chair of South Port, Southland's only listed entity. I am delighted that you have assumed that, and I wish you all the very best, Nind, for the time going forward. As that concludes the business, I declare the meeting closed. Sorry, one piece for you. Oh, sorry. Oh, we got the. Yeah. Great. Thanks.
I will just make a comment or something. You may, yeah.
I will just. Sorry, there were a couple of late questions that come in. Where are we? Sorry, yes, there were a couple of questions that arrived just literally before we came in the door here. "Can we please get a trading update for the first three months of the fiscal year?" Look, we have said what we are going to say in terms of update. Derek, you covered the cargo. What was the percentage?
13.
You've got to be a little bit careful because month to month, they vary quite a lot. Wood chips shipment can come in, we had two in one month and none in the next. Makes quite a dramatic difference. So, we're reluctant to change the original comment, which was that we'd anticipate being similar to last year. "Do the directors have a view on recent commentary by the Commerce Commission on pricing for ports?" Well, I don't think we do. Is there anything you want to add to that?
What's your take?
Yeah. I don't-
Expose from Tom.
Yes. Okay. Sorry. So, in terms of Jeremy, if you would like to say a few words, yeah, that would be appreciated. Anyone else before I shut the meeting formally?
Yeah. For the people online, I am Jeremy McPhail, Chair of Environment Southland, and still a majority shareholder. And I represent the regional, the majority shareholding of South Port on behalf of 58,000 ratepayers. So we have a shareholding too, and 100,000 people, to be honest. Look, first off, I want to thank Philip for all the work you have done over the last 16 years, did you say? 16 and the last few years. I think it is really important that the relationship between ourselves has grown. And that has been critical for us to be able to go through the process that we have been through and to get a better understanding of the business and what it does, and hopefully for you guys to know what it does for us in regards to the dividend, and offsetting rates and doing good work in the community.
Also, I would like to thank, wish the best to Nicola taking over the role and looking forward to building on that relationship. And I would like to congratulate the new directors and getting to know you over the next wee while as looking for an exciting future. And Derek, we have had lots of changes, haven't we since I have gone through. It feels like a clean out, but it is not a clean out. It is actually really great. And having Derek here and recognizing Nigel's work over the many years. He has been great to work with and so it is really positive. I suppose I was actually just reflecting a wee bit, and obviously, we have sold down a chunk of, I would not say chunk, 14% odd of our shareholding.
Just to clarify that this was in no way of saying, "Hey, we are not interested in South Port." This is actually about diversifying our portfolio and building resilience, and having a broader range of investments. Absolutely the main thing was that we still are a majority shareholder for our community, and a critical infrastructure to the Southland economy. And we are very pleased with the outcome we have achieved, and we can thank, I would like to thank Scott Hamilton, who is sitting here. He worked really well for us in just bringing it together. And this has been something that we have probably been, for us as councilors, I know we talked about it five, six years ago, and it has been a long process and we have done it right and worked with the community.
Worked, made sure we did it right, and I think it's been a very good outcome, and hopefully it brings more shares into the market and a bit of more liquidity around that. Which is good for the company, too. I was actually reflecting on why South Port is so important to the Southland economy. I had to reflect back that I'm a sixth-generation farmer here in Southland. My great-great-great-grandfather came in Bluff on the Rangitoto in the 1860s and bought 22 horses, probably as many kids as well, from New South Wales, actually. A McIntyre, and he took up the run between basically Gore and Kapiti, 22,000 acres. We're lucky we still live on, we farm on some of that land.
But understanding the connection of 160 years back to this port that brought the immigrants, brought the people and now we're using it. It's bringing produce in to look after our agriculture sector, but we're also exporting from it, and it's critical to have this infrastructure to sell our product to the world and throughout New Zealand, and Bluff's a really important one for Southland. Really exciting. We see, especially living in the community, what's going on in Southland. There's just so many opportunities and when you look at the GDP growth and things like that, we're leading this in the country. A lot going on and we just need to really grow on that. On another hand, though, we always like to see our investments working well for us. I know people are worried about what I'm going to say, but that is critical.
It is an investment and we're always looking, as shareholders, looking for returns. We'll be very interested to see how your dividend strategy in the future of the company's going really well, trying to balance up those capital needs, but also, hey, we're long loyal supporters. How do we get that money back into the community to their benefit, too? I'm sure there's other shareholders say the same. The other 49% might be saying the same thing. That'll be a really good discussion to go ahead and understand that, be around that. Well done management also, not just governance. Management, everything, big thumbs up and let's just get on together and move forward. Thank you.
There's no other comments anyone wants to make before I close the meeting? Thank you for those words. You can be assured that the dividend policy is now under constant review. That concludes the business. I declare the meeting closed, invite shareholders to join the Directors and leadership team for refreshments and a light lunch. Thank you for your attendance. Meeting closed.