New Zealand’s SkyCity Entertainment Group Limited will file legal proceedings against the developers of its New Zealand International Convention Centre (NZICC) seeking NZ$330 million (US$200 million) damages for losses arising from delays to completion of the project.
The company noted in a filing early Friday morning that it would file against Fletcher Building Limited and The Fletcher Construction Company Limited that delivery of NZICC is now nearly six and a half years behind the contractually agreed delivery date of January 2019.
Its claim alleges that Fletchers’ breaches of contract, which include causing a major fire on the roof of the development in October 2019 that paused construction, “constituted gross negligence and/or a persistent, flagrant or wilful neglect to carry out obligations under the building works contract.”
According to SkyCity, attempts to resolve the claims by agreement with Fletchers have been unable to reach a resolution.
“The NZICC was originally scheduled to take approximately three years to build, and it has now taken almost 10,” said SkyCity CEO Jason Walbridge.
“This is a project of key importance not only for SkyCity but also Auckland and the wider New Zealand economy.
“We remain confident in our opening date of February 2026 and expect the building to be handed over to us in the second half of this year. We are ramping up for opening with recruitment for key positions already underway and exciting plans to celebrate finally being able to open our doors and welcome visitors to enjoy the world class experience we will have on offer.”
The legal claim comes with SkyCity having recently lowered its FY25 EBITDA forecast to fall 4% below the bottom of its previous guidance range of between NZ$225 million and NZ$245 million (US$135 million and US$147 million) due to declining spend per customer.
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