Today in Business: September 29, 2025

Welcome to Today in Business - Powered by Spark for Business, an experimental AI podcast by the New Zealand Herald.
Each weekday, we bring you five stories, the best of the New Zealand Herald business journalism, summarised and delivered by an AI voice as an easily digestible recap.
It's Monday, September 29, 2025, and here are five stories you should know about.
Major power users are urging stronger measures to secure electricity supply as the Government prepares a response to the Frontier Economics review. The Major Energy Users' Group, which includes Fonterra and NZ Steel, says wholesale prices have risen 150 percent over eight years, with industrial users facing 34 percent higher costs in just two years. Chair John Harbord says the system is "fundamentally reliant" on Genesis Energy's Huntly power station, and warns prices remain high even during periods of abundant supply. Genesis recently struck a two-year deal with BT Mining for 240,000 tonnes of coal to bolster Huntly's coal reserve.
In other news, Auckland Airport plans to raise up to 300 million dollars through bond issues. The company today launched an offer of 150 million dollars in five and a half year fixed rate retail bonds, with an indicative margin of 0.85 to 0.90 percent and maturity on April 8, 2031. The retail offer opens today, with all bonds reserved for clients of ANZ, Westpac, NZX participants, intermediaries, and institutional investors. The airport may also issue wholesale floating-rate bonds maturing in October 2028. Last week, the airport opened its 465 million dollar northern airfield expansion project.
Meanwhile, a Christchurch builder's been sentenced for evading more than 260 thousand dollars in tax. Gary Terence Moss received seven months of home detention, and was ordered to pay 20 thousand dollars in reparations, after failing to declare income since 2016. Inland Revenue says Moss filed no tax returns between 2019 and 2022 and submitted a false 2023 return, before fleeing briefly to Australia. His underpaid tax was assessed at 267 thousand dollars. Moss later engaged a tax agent, but incomplete amended returns were rejected. He was convicted on one representative charge and one charge of attempting to evade assessment.
The Commerce Commission has delayed its decision on Kegstar New Zealand's proposed acquisition of rival, Konvoy, until December. The regulator says it's concerned the merger could substantially reduce competition in keg pooling services, leaving brewers with only one provider. An anonymous small producer submission says alternatives such as one-way plastic kegs or buying a private fleet are impractical. Kegstar, owned by US-based MicroStar Logistics, argues Konvoy is not viable independently. Konvoy went into liquidation in May, but continues servicing customers. The commission says clearance will only be granted if competition is not substantially lessened. Decision date is December 4.
And most business leaders support further cuts to New Zealand's official cash rate. In the Herald's Mood of the Boardroom survey, 78 percent back lower rates, while 11 percent oppose cuts and 11 percent are unsure. The Reserve Bank lowered the OCR by 25 basis points to 3.00 percent in August, its lowest since 2022. Many executives say cheaper borrowing is critical for economic momentum, though others warn inflation risks must be contained. Several respondents criticize the Reserve Bank's communication, while others stress monetary policy should be paired with supportive bank lending and government cost-relief measures.
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