$206m research facility at Lincoln University scrapped
Tuesday, 12 February 2019
Long-held plans for a $206 million research facility at Lincoln University in Canterbury have been scrapped.
The university is heading back to the drawing board because AgResearch, its partner in the beleaguered project, will build its own facility, potentially on Lincoln's campus.
The joint facility, which was considered central to Lincoln's future and financial sustainability, would have been the largest agricultural research centre in the southern hemisphere, housing up to 900 scientists from Crown Research Institutes including Landcare Research, Plant & Food Research and DairyNZ.
Lincoln University may now build a separate research centre – something its council will consider in the coming months.
**READ MORE:
* [Lincoln-AgResearch joint facility delay 'disappointing': Hipkins
](https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/109206549/joint-lincoln-facility-delay-disappointing-hipkins)* Lincoln and AgResearch look to cut cost of science research facility, secure contractor
* Education Minister 'frustrated' as Lincoln Uni and AgResearch delay facility build
* Lincoln-AgResearch joint facility development delayed until end of 2018
* Declining confidence in delivery of $206m science research centre**
The move comes after Education Minister Chris Hipkins in December rejected a third business case to Government seeking $85m in funding for the joint facility.
Hipkins said that money was still available if Lincoln could provide a complete business case detailing the project's price, main contractor and construction plan in accordance with Treasury guidelines.
While Lincoln has some money to build, 'the joint facility as currently designed cannot be built without Crown contribution', acting vice-chancellor Phil O'Callaghan* said in an issued statement.
On Wednesday, AgResearch chief executive Tom Richardson said he hoped more tenants, who may have been unsure about the facility's future, would sign on to an AgResearch-owned build.
Its design and cost may change after AgResearch's board received a more detailed proposal in June, but Richardson said early plans were for a 7000 square metre centre costing up to $100m.
AgResearch's interest was in developing a science and innovation precinct in Lincoln rather than a single, jointly-owned building, he said.
'For us, the project we started in 2013 was to develop the whole precinct. We need square meterage to meet our needs, yesterday.
'The [joint facility] business case, we were fully committed to – if it had been approved. It was worth doing but it didn't materialise.'
Groundworks for the 27,000 square metre joint facility were completed in August 2017, but work ground to a halt when Lincoln and AgResearch couldn't find a contractor to meet their budget.
The parties put the contract back out to tender in April last year to the frustration of Hipkins, who was informed of the delay in submitting a second business case just three days before its March 18 deadline.
A preferred contractor was identified in September but that arrangement will now have to be revised.
Richardson said he hoped the delay in completing AgResearch's facility would not be significant – the first part of the joint facility was expected to be finished by the end of 2020.
When both AgResearch and Lincoln were eyeing major construction projects in 2015, 'we said 'let's explore whether we put one facility in that location',' he said.
Now it made more sense to return to their original 2016 plan: a shared vision in separate buildings.
'Without that [$85m government] investment coming through … we and Lincoln both felt we needed to move,' Richardson said.
* The original version of this story quoted the acting vice-chancellor as Bruce McKenzie. Lincoln University advises Phil O'Callaghan is the acting vice-chancellor at the time of publication.