New Zealand water could be the next big export to China and one of the companies that has just jumped in for a slice of the pie is none other than Oravida.
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They've now expanded from Scampi and milk, to water from a plant in the Bay of Plenty it bought for an undisclosed sum last year.
Oravida has a consent to 146 million litres of ground water a year and the regional council says Oravida pays an annual compliance charge of around $500.
Oravida markets the water at $1.60 a litre, meaning if all 146 million litres were sold it could be worth $233 million a year.
$500 for a $233 million revenue stream? This is simple plunder. But its a perfect example of why we need to price water: to ensure that we actually benefit from our resources, rather than letting them be effectively stolen from us for beads and blankets.