CANBERRA — In May, Hall Contracting began work on a civil construction project supporting the rehabilitation of wharves, reef passages, and bridges, in the remote island nation of Tokelau for the New Zealand Aid Programme. But the isolation of Tokelau, as well as the cost of doing business in the Pacific, means opportunities for construction projects such as these are few and far between. Tokelau is accessible only by sea with its nearest neighbor, Samoa, approximately 500 kilometers away.
This new contract is not Hall Contracting’s first foray into the aid program, having previously been awarded development contracts in Tuvalu and Fiji.
With China’s aid program and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank potentially looking to advance engineering projects in the Pacific, opportunities may increase. But so will private-sector competition bidding at a lower rate.