National Party leader Judith Collins told Southland leaders it would facilitate negotiations to keep Southland’s Tiwai Point Aluminium Smelter open if elected next month. When questioned on Tiwai she guaranteed a bailout or subsidy to Rio Tinto was completely off the table. Both said they had not yet had any conversations with Rio Tinto. "Over the past decade, Rio Tinto has spent nearly $4 billion in the New Zealand economy, with over $3 billion of that going towards the electricity market. On transmission costs alone, Rio Tinto has paid $610 million over the past 10 years."

Source: Otago Daily Times August 28, 2020 16:41 UTC