Government embarks on major global trade missions to sell SA to world investors

A FIVE-STAR resort as part of a redevelopment of Cleland Wildlife Park tops an inventory of opportunities which Premier Jay Weatherill and senior ministers will pitch to world investors.

Reshuffle

• Port waterfront up for sale for $2bn investment
• Trade mission leaves for China and Hong Kong

A FIVE-STAR resort as part of a $100 million redevelopment of Cleland Wildlife Park tops an inventory of opportunities in South Australia which Premier Jay Weatherill and senior ministers will pitch to investors around the world.

Starting next weekend in China when Mr Weatherill leads the state’s biggest-ever trade mission, investors will be told of large-scale projects that need foreign capital.

Sites in the Riverbank Precinct — including the old RAH and Festival Centre Plaza, a food-manufacturing hub in the northern suburbs and the Port Adelaide waterfront land sales launched yesterday are also on the list which the State Government will take to Malaysia, Singapore, the UK, France, Italy and the US.

SA had always required foreign investment and now was a good time to seek support because of the state’s need to create jobs and global capital markets’ demand for good opportunities, Mr Weatherill said.

“We’ve got urgent and large challenges,” he said.

“We want action as soon as possible.

“There are no barriers to this happening as soon as someone decides it’s an idea they want to pursue.”

Mr Weatherill said the series of trade missions over the next year would seek to “whet the appetite of investors” without being overly prescriptive about what the projects would look like.

“My vision for SA is for it to be the place where people and business thrive,” he said.

“The vision is about opening the door to new ideas, new opportunities, new people and new businesses.”

Market research on the rapidly increasing number of Chinese visitors has found they prefer staying in the comfort of city accommodation but want a taste of the Australian bush.

At 20 minutes’ drive from the city centre, Cleland presented a unique opportunity to combine the two.

The government wants to leverage the exposure SA now as the showcase of the Australian exhibit which opened in March at Hong Kong’s Ocean Park.

The park has seven million visitors a year who would see koalas from Cleland, red-necked wallabies and kookaburras.

“They can’t touch the animals in Hong Kong but in Cleland they can,” Mr Weatherill said.

The $100 million figure was an estimate for investors of the cost to build accommodation, a top-class restaurant and facilities.

“It’s very much conceptual,” Mr Weatherill said.

“It might be a Chinese travel agency that would be keen.

“Especially if they had an interest in an airline, they could fill it (a redeveloped Cleland).”

Mr Weatherill said any deal would include provisions to protect South Australians from any steep increase in fees — currently $22/adult and $11/child.

He rejected characterising the sales pitch as privatisation of state assets.

“It’s certainly bringing private investment into a public space,” he said.

“But it will improve visitor experience for all tourists.”

Visitor numbers to Cleland fell from 112,000 in 2007-08 to 97,000 in 2011-12 but have rebounded by 10 per cent in each of the past two years from better marketing and expanded activities.

A masterplan was drawn up in 2013 for the park, including a koala centre to be run in partnership with University of South Australia, and elevated walkways to see koalas and rock wallabies up close.

That plan was costed at $17 million but no work has begun on the site because of limited funds.

The plan would be wrapped into a new design in consultation with an investor.

Previous attempts to develop the Cleland-Mount Lofty precinct have included a $50 million project involving a cable car from Waterfall Gully via an upgraded wildlife park to a new hotel on the summit.

Facing environmental issues, it was rejected in 1989 by then premier John Bannon and downscaled to the current Mt Lofty restaurant and visitor centre.

Mr Weatherill also will tout opportunities associated with the Riverbank Precinct.

The health science and hospital zone west of the Morphett St bridge, entertainment zone surrounding the casino, Adelaide Oval and Festival Centre, and the education zone from Kintore Avenue to Hackney Rd presented many prospects.

“There are plenty of opportunities left still for investment in those areas,” Mr Weatherill said.

He also wanted to encourage investors to look at SA’s agricultural and food-processing sectors.

Mr Weatherill leaves for SA’s Chinese sister province of Shandong next weekend with a 246-person delegation.

He said it was important to have strong government representation because the Chinese wanted reassurance about the state’s attitude to business.

The mission includes a large contingent from local government.

“We encourage them but it is up to them to make their own judgments about it,” Mr Weatherill said.

The Opposition is not on the mission.

“We would have accommodated them if they wanted to come along,” he said.

“We try to get a bipartisan position on trade.”

Agriculture spokesman David Ridgway travelled with ministerial counterpart Leon Bignell to a China food fair earlier this month and Opposition trade secretary Jing Lee went with Mr Weatherill to Hong Kong in March.

Mr Weatherill defended spending time away from his parliamentary desk on international travels.

“South Australians want jobs,” he said.

“And to create jobs we need to invest in productive infrastructure.”