Government helps wine industry fix storage tank damage from Kaikoura quake

Officials from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment and the Ministry for Primary Industries are working with New Zealand Winegrowers to resolve quake damage to wine storage tanks in the Marlborough region that is threatening the 2017 harvest.

An estimated 20 percent of wine storage tanks in the Marlborough region, the country's largest wine producing area, have been damaged by the impact of the recent Kaikoura earthquake. There is the potential that a lack of storage will affect the ability of the industry to process the full 2017 harvest, which commences in around 15 weeks, said Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce.

He said Guy had met with Marlborough wine representatives twice since the earthquake and Guy said there were a number of things that are urgently needed to be addressed, including availability of stainless steel tanks, logistics, consenting issues, and potential skills shortages.

Wine exports totalled $1.6 billion last year and 70 percent of the industry is located in Marlborough.

.New Zealand Winegrowers has just completed a survey of the earthquake impact on its members and chief executive Philip Gregan said the wine loss experienced accounts for only a little over 2 percent of Marlborough's total annual production.

"While this is frustrating, this is not a major concern as vintage 2016 was a near record one," he said. "This means there is plenty of wine available to continue our market growth."

Of more concern is the damage to 20 percent storage tanks and Gregan said that number could change as the damage assessment continues.

The repair process was likely to continue for many months, he said.

Gregan said he wasn't aware of any issues affecting the transport of wine out of the region.

Earlier today listed winemaker Delegat Group advised the sharemarket that it had suffered no significant damage to buildings, tank storage facilities or its winemaking and viticulture infrastructure based on visual inspections after the quake. As a precautionary measure though, structural engineers will be engaged to undertake further assessments, it said in a statement.

(BusinessDesk)