Effects of privatised power
The entirely predictable effects of privatising much of our electricity generation capacity are arriving thick and fast.
Mighty River Power
National – a party for wastrels
The Crown Financial Statements to the end of November 2013 show that the sale of Meridian and Air New Zealand added hundreds of millions of dollars to the cost of the asset sales programme. Combined with the cost of the Mighty River Power sale and ancillary costs such as the Rio Tinto payout, the total cost of the asset sales now stands at $440m. National just likes burning the money of the taxpayers for no productive purpose.
Mighty River Power is buying back shares
The Board of Mighty River Power has announced that it is buying back up to 2% of its shares because this is a prudent use of capital and will be value enhancing. It is a shame that the Government was incapable of seeing this. Expect a surge in its share price to occur and I suspect that this will be beneficial for the Meridian float.
Market not impressed with $30 Million payout
Yesterday John Key gave $30 Million of tax payer’s money to Rio Tinto in order to prop up its electricity deal with Meridian – and thus to prop up his privatisation ideology. Mighty River Power shares took a hit. Smart investors getting out?
$2.49
That’s what Mighty River stocks closed at today. Down on their issue price within ten days.
Key’s no-shows – protecting Brand Key
Who was missing from the Mighty River and SkyCity launches? Being seen at the front of positive government stories is a big part of the PM’s job, unless concerns over protecting Brand Key override that. The fact Key has been a no-show at these two announcements of central planks of National’s agenda tells you a lot about what the Nats’ polling says about them.
MRP sale fail numbers
Here are the numbers that sum up the MRP sale fail – foremost among them the $1,000 that the government has spent per Kiwi investor attracted.
Why Brian Gaynor wants you to keep paying too much for power
To say Brian Gaynor is excited about the Mighty River sale is an understatement. Of his last five Herald columns, two have been about how great it will be, and two have been about how awful NZ Power is. His other media appearances have been in a similar vein: Mighty River = good, NZ Power = bad. It’s in his financial interests that investors aren’t scared off Mighty River.
Nats trying hide Mighty River risks?
It is absolutely essential for National that lots of ordinary Kiwis buy Mighty River shares. Is that why, as Rod Oram found, there’s no independent advice available to ‘mum and dad’ on the size of the risks? National must have such advice, but it’s keeping it from the public and beating the ‘buy, buy, buy’ drum instead.
A float with no %name%
The Nats have spent $48.7 Million of our money “preparing” Mighty River Power for sale, and they couldn’t even get the very basics right.
Attention Mum and Dad investors
Labour’s Clayton Cosgrove reveals that when selling Mighty River Power shares, brokers will get twice the commission for selling to a foreign buyer. This will send ownership overseas and drive up prices for Kiwis.
More pay for them; bigger bills for us
Ryall has announced that Might River Power top brass will be receiving massive pay rises, in relation to the sale of the powercos. The directors have multiple positions, and questions have been raise about the past of one or two of them. They benefit; we pay.
Rio Tinto ups the ante
Our “let’s make a deal” PM is outclassed on this one. I actually have some sympathy this time, the government is between a rock and a hard place. But while most of us worry about Southland, I suspect the Nats’ concerns will be a little closer to home…
What if Winston…
What if Winston Peters holds the balance of power in 2014? Just a little something for potential Mighty River Power investors to consider…
Shearer signed up for sale
On Morning Report this morning there was a clip of John Key (in Brazil) saying that David Shearer had signed up to buy […]
Spoiled brats running MRP
No surprise to find that Mighty River Power bosses are behaving like spoiled brats – that’s pretty much what they are.
ImperatorFish: Poor, sick, and unemployed looking forward to MRP share offer
John Armstrong may think that “the question now – as far as most people are concerned – is whether Mighty River Power shares will be a good investment,” but Scott’s been out there to find out what ‘most’ people really think…
This reeks of kickbacks
It appears that someone in the government is leaking private information from the asset stripping of SOE value. Serious questions are being asked about how a sharebroking firm managed to obtain the details of a woman who’d just registered her interest in buying Mighty River Power shares. Is there a kickback system in operation? Perhaps to help fund the exorbitant upfront costs of sale?
Mighty River is go!
Prepare for the government’s million dollar asset sales ad blitz…
Mighty River sale on hold
As expected, the High Court advised today that the government should hold off sale of Mighty River Power. The government is complying.
A confession
I joined Mighty River Power today. They offered me $150 incentive payment, no contract and a cheap rate. But couldn’t help wondering – am I part of a push to up their user numbers in preparation for sale? So the numbers look good on the books, even if people (like me) might not stay? What will happen to the share price when lots of users leave after the Government’s flogged 49% off?
And so it begins
Mighty River Power is first on the block, to be sold in the third quarter of next year (weather conditions permitting).