Looking ahead, the National Infrastructure Plan assesses where we're at and how we get to where we want to be.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- NZ spends big but gets poor returns.
- The $275 billion pipeline is mostly already committed.
- Maintenance, not new builds, is the real priority.
- Ten priorities have been identified for the next decade.
- A government response is due by 20 June 2026.
New Zealand's first National Infrastructure Plan charts a 30-year course through a $275 billion pipeline. But what does this mean for the construction sector over the next decade?
Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop presented New Zealand's first-ever National Infrastructure Plan in Parliament in February. It was both an audit of where New Zealand infrastructure is at and a proposed roadmap ahead. The 226-page document, produced by Te Waihanga, the New Zealand Infrastructure Commission, draws on more than 2,700 pieces of public feedback gathered after a draft was released in June 2025.
New Zealand infrastructure is at a critical turning point, and the release of the National Infrastructure Plan (NIP) is a serious and substantial contribution to the discussion, Infrastructure New Zealand says. “The NIP rightly highlights the pressures facing the system – ageing assets, rising construction costs, fiscal constraints and growing natural hazard exposure. It confirms that New Zealand has invested heavily in infrastructure over the past two decades – around 5.8 percent of GDP annually – yet continues to rank near the bottom for efficiency and value for money.”
Welcoming the plan, Chief Executive Nick Leggett said, “That is the central issue. We probably spend enough. But we do not consistently get the return we should. Improving productivity in infrastructure delivery is the challenge we must now solve.”
For the construction sector, the NIP is essential reading on the big picture path forward. The plan is framed by the challenge facing New Zealand as one of the biggest infrastructure spenders in the OECD, as a share of GDP, yet being a country that is consistently ranked near the bottom for what we actually get in return for this spend.
Geoff Cooper, Chief Executive of Te Waihanga said, on the announcement of the plan:
Our pipeline
Our national pipeline for infrastructure now includes nearly 12,000 projects across 130 contributing organisations, with a combined expected cost of $275 billion. Of that total, approximately $185 billion has committed or confirmed funding, while $82.7 billion remains unfunded or in the early planning stages.
Over 2,700 initiatives, with a total expected cost of $68.4 billion, were reported as under construction as of the December 2025 pipeline update. Of this total, around 98% of projects are valued at below $100 million, making up the everyday bread and butter of infrastructure delivery. Only 44 projects exceed $1 billion in value, and most of those do not yet have a clear path to funding.
New Zealand invested an average of 5.8% of GDP annually on infrastructure over the past two decades. This is one of the highest rates in the developed world. Yet on value-for-money measures used to calculate these figures, our country is shown to lag well behind comparable nations. The reason, the NIP argues, is structural rather than simply financial. It appears New Zealand's planning, consenting, and procurement systems add cost and delay at every stage, showing this "stop-start" approach to major projects is hugely detrimental. And it seems asset management has been neglected, creating a growing backlog of renewals that is now the country's single greatest infrastructure obligation.
Commission Chief Executive Geoff Cooper is unequivocal on this point: the renewal and maintenance of existing assets — not new construction — represents what he calls "the mega project we cannot avoid." The NIP calculates that roughly 60 cents of every infrastructure dollar spent over the next 30 years should go towards maintenance and upgrades. At present, only around 30% of the National Infrastructure Pipeline is allocated to this purpose.
Ten priorities for the next decade
The NIP distills its analysis into 10 urgent priorities for the coming decade:
What this means for construction?
For those working in construction and infrastructure delivery, the Plan shows several clear signals.
First, maintenance and renewals work will be the dominant activity across the sector for the foreseeable future. Firms with strong asset management, inspection, and renewal capabilities will be among those likely to benefit from sustained demand.
Secondly, the historical way of ad hoc project approval looks to be coming to an end. The Plan's 16 structural recommendations include requirements for all infrastructure providers to maintain up-to-date data in the National Infrastructure Pipeline, and a strengthened assurance system for major projects. For industry, this means greater investment certainty over time, but also greater scrutiny of cost and delivery performance.
And thirdly, it shows workforce capacity remains a critical constraint. The pipeline's workforce demand projections showed particular pressure when construction starts scheduled for 2026 were factored in. The National Infrastructure Plan calls for investment in workforce development and capability as an imperative across the sector.
Next steps
With the Government having 180 days from tabling to formally responding to the plan, a response is expected by 20 June 2026. Minister Bishop has signalled his intention to engage other political parties in Parliament and to seek bipartisan support for the plan's direction. This reflects the Te Waihanga, New Zealand Infrastructure Commission's stance that infrastructure lasts for generations and requires cross-party consensus.
The Commission says it will monitor progress against its recommendations to support transparency and accountability, with key sections of the plan being updated regularly as the pipeline evolves and investment decisions are made.
It acknowledges that a plan by itself will not change anything, but what this plan provides, for the first time in New Zealand's history, is a comprehensive picture of the country's infrastructure needs and what is required to meet them. For an industry that has long operated in a climate of uncertainty and stop-start funding, that is a significant step forward.
