Wellington has begun construction of a new maintenance support facility at Burnham Military Camp in New Zealand‘s South Island.
The military facility is one of nine major logistics projects under the nation’s $133.3 million Defence Estate Regeneration Program.
New Zealand Defense Minister Andrew Little was present at the site on Wednesday for a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the official start of construction work for the upcoming facility.
“Today’s sod-turning shows this government continues to take national security seriously,” he said.
According to the defense leader, the Burnham MSF will provide the New Zealand military with improved capability to ensure that critical equipment is in optimal working condition. The facility will replace Second World War-era buildings at the South Island military camp.
In addition to the new MSF, Little noted that Prime Minister Hipkins’ government recently gave service members their “largest pay increase in a decade” and acquired new technologies such as the P8-A Poseidon surveillance aircraft and the Super Hercules strategic airlift. The investments, he said, are part of the nation’s response to the evolving global security environment due to climate change and growing geostrategic tension, especially in the Pacific.
New Zealand is also building a new operational space for the army’s 3 Transport Company, a health and rehabilitation center and a fuel facility at Ohakea Airbase.