Besix Watpac is the lead contractor in the Kōtui team which is made up of companies from Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere, with a combined portfolio of more than 400 stadiums worldwide. The team includes Southbase Construction, Fulton Hogan, Lewis Bradford, Warren & Mahoney, Populous and Mott MacDonald.
The CMUA is a 25,000-seat covered stadium for hosting major sporting contests and international concerts. It has been designed with a scalable seating capacity to ensure it remains fit for purpose for smaller concerts, shows and events.
Besix Watpac CEO Jean-Pol Bouharmont believes it’s the beginning of a new era for the company as it adds New Zealand to its sphere of operations to become both an Australian and New Zealand contractor. “We now have the opportunity to demonstrate our excellence in engineering, safety and delivery and demonstrate to the New Zealand market how we can drive much greater value on their projects,” he said.
The Kōtui team is honoured to have been selected as preferred contractor to deliver the Canterbury Multi-Use Arena (CMUA), a new centrepiece of cultural and sporting pride for the people of Christchurch and the Canterbury region.
Quin Henderson, CEO of Southbase Construction said that the CMUA is more than a stadium. “We will create a stunning multi-use arena to fulfill an incredibly important role in our city. It will celebrate the spirit of Ōtautahi Christchurch and entice the world to experience the internationally renowned sporting, arts, and the cultural pride we have on offer,” he said.
Fulton Hogan general manager construction Justin McDowell said: “Kōtui’s vision for the CMUA is to unite and ignite the spirit of Christchurch and we are all incredibly invested in the importance of that objective. We are also very proud of the capability embodied in our team and we have no doubt we will deliver a brilliant result.”
There is a significant period of geotechnical, survey and design work to be done before construction can commence. The team will begin work immediately on the design and survey phases.
Construction of the arena is expected to start in early 2022.
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