Submission
Which option do you prefer?
Option Two – The alternative option – Keep Aurora Energy
Further comment
My reasons for not agreeing to the sale of this city asset are based in the lessons of the negative impacts of public asset sales of the 1990s. At one time the citizens of Dunedin owned the Waipori power station as well as the asset now known as Aurora Energy Company. These assets were set up by earlier city councillors to provide a service to our citizens. However this service has since been corrupted into a "business" which has been expected to pay dividends to a council saddled with the debt incurred by the building of the Rugby stadium. As a service it should be reinvesting in infrastructure not paying the council dividends. The electricity reforms have contributed to energy poverty of vulnerable individuals and families and contributed to rising inequality in our communities.
Aurora is an actual physical asset as opposed to a notional/hoped for asset of a future investment portfolio. The sale of any city assets, especially this essential monopoly service is not something that was campaigned on by the current mayor or any existing councillors. Once Aurora Energy is in private ownership, their priority will be to look after their shareholders rather than our citizens who are all ratepayers whether they are owners or renters. We, the ratepayers can't afford to keep pursuing this kind of short term thinking by the city council. We need you all to start thinking in terms of generations, rather than decades, if we want prosperity for our children and their children.
Supporting information
No associated documents with this submission.
Submitter
Submission id number: 1045477
Submitter name:
Suzanne Menzies-Culling
Organisation