Latest / Best of Business / Anonymous petrol station owner: Concerned spokesperson speaks out on BNZ signalling end to fossil fuel lending

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Anonymous petrol station owner: Concerned spokesperson speaks out on BNZ signalling end to fossil fuel lending · Best of Business

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: You're listening to a podcast from newstalk ZEDB. Follow this
• 0:13
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• 0:16
  Speaker 2: Right now, rural petrol stations are being told by BNZ
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: their bank it'll stop funding them by twenty thirty because
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: of its commitment to the Net Zero Banking Alliance. Documents
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: provided to Federated Farmers show BNZ has a policy that
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: there is to be no new lending to petrol stations
• 0:34
  Speaker 2: and all existing debt needs to be paid back by
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: twenty thirty. However, bnz's CEO Dan Huggins told a select
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: committee a Parliament today, the movers because we won't need
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: the petrol stations in twenty thirty.
• 0:47
  Speaker 3: We would expect that we're going to see conversion to
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: electric vehicles demand change for fuel services. So therefore we've said, look,
• 0:56
  Speaker 3: we we think we've got enough exposure in that space
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  Speaker 3: and don't want to increase that exposure.
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: We're joined now by an owner of multiple rural petrol
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  Speaker 2: stations who wants to remain anonymous because he's concerned about
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: his relationship with be in Z, which is fair enough.
• 1:10
  Speaker 2: Get a welcome to the show.
• 1:12
  Speaker 4: Oh hi, how are you?
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: I'm good? Thank you thank you for talking to me.
• 1:16
  Speaker 2: What did be in Z tell you?
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  Speaker 4: Well, are any new purchases of the petrol station. We
• 1:25
  Speaker 4: will not have any lending available to us and we
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  Speaker 4: will not be able to and we have to pay
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  Speaker 4: all our debts by twenty thirty. This is exactly what
• 1:35
  Speaker 4: we've been told by BNZ. We have approached them multiple
• 1:39
  Speaker 4: times for various reasons to expand, but every time we
• 1:47
  Speaker 4: have come across this hurdle.
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  Speaker 2: And they have seen specifically it's because of well climate
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: change essentially.
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  Speaker 4: Correct, and you know we've been told it is because
• 2:00
  Speaker 4: of the net Banking zero Alliance which be in there
• 2:04
  Speaker 4: have signed or multiple banks have signed, and because of
• 2:07
  Speaker 4: that we cannot get any more landing. And it's a
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: top down policy and hence the reason our local individual
• 2:18
  Speaker 4: who we deal with could not help us out.
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: Are you in a position financially to pay back you're
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  Speaker 2: borrowing by twenty thirty?
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  Speaker 4: Absolutely not. With the current cash flow of the businesses,
• 2:31
  Speaker 4: it's near impossible to make those payments. And that's our
• 2:36
  Speaker 4: worry that how we are able to make that payment
• 2:40
  Speaker 4: which run in a million millions, and we're not in
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  Speaker 4: a position to pay that at all.
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  Speaker 2: What happens. If you can't, well.
• 2:51
  Speaker 4: We have to close down. And with closing down, then
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  Speaker 4: those dozens of jobs.
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  Speaker 2: Actually, what about other banks? Have you tried any others
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  Speaker 2: who perhaps aren't doing the same deal here as being
• 3:06
  Speaker 2: z Well.
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  Speaker 4: We've been trying to work with a bank, but we
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: have heard through various our colleagues who are the fellow dealers,
• 3:18
  Speaker 4: there are some restrictions coming through. Some are taking more
• 3:23
  Speaker 4: prominent approach in climate related activities. So we are finding that.
• 3:28
  Speaker 4: But changing a bank who suddenly because of this policy
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  Speaker 4: is really difficult. When you are operating multiple sites. It's
• 3:39
  Speaker 4: proving more difficult than anything else. But the worry is
• 3:43
  Speaker 4: that we can change the bank, but if the other
• 3:48
  Speaker 4: bank also changes, that will be another blow to us.
• 3:52
  Speaker 2: The thing that I don't understand here is if anyone
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: was going to be converting to AVS in the near future,
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  Speaker 2: it wouldn't be a rural area like this would be
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  Speaker 2: the last last place surely that you would be worried about.
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  Speaker 4: Well, that's what I could not understand that. Hey, farmers
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  Speaker 4: and other rural communities, they have got farm equipments where
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  Speaker 4: they need to operate their farms and all sorts of
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  Speaker 4: and run their business and if there are no lending
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  Speaker 4: available to the petrol station, there is very limited options.
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  Speaker 4: They have to and or maybe they close down. And
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  Speaker 4: where is that petrol or diesel will come from? Are
• 4:34
  Speaker 4: we thinking about farmer traveling fifty kilometers to Amend provincial
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  Speaker 4: town to get their petrol? I don't think so, and
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  Speaker 4: that's going to push costs up as well as the
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  Speaker 4: job losses.
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  Speaker 2: Well, good luck. I hope that you have you managed
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  Speaker 2: to find some kind of solution here because I mean,
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  Speaker 2: as you say, you can't afford to pay it back
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  Speaker 2: by twenty thirty. You can't. They're not allowing you to
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: go and buy another petrol station to borrow off, so
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  Speaker 2: you're limited. Your options seem to be limited that I
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  Speaker 2: wish you the best to luck.
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  Speaker 4: Thank you so much. Yes, there are limited options, but
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  Speaker 4: look we are still working and this is our nightmare
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  Speaker 4: at the moment being in a patrol industry. I'm sure
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  Speaker 4: you know something will change or come about and we
• 5:23
  Speaker 4: sail through this difficult time.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you very much for your time. That is the
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  Speaker 2: owner of multiple rural petrol stations who wants to remain
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  Speaker 2: anonymous because he's got a relationship with B and D
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  Speaker 2: but you can understand, and he wants to try and
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  Speaker 2: protect that as much as he can.
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