Maersk’s integrated cold chain facility at the Ruakura Superhub in Hamilton, New Zealand, has received a 6 Star Green Star NZ Design & As‑Built rating from the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC), marking the first time a cold storage building in New Zealand has met the country’s highest sustainability standard, according to the company’s release.
Opened in February 2024 and spanning 18,000 m², the facility is Maersk’s largest infrastructure investment in New Zealand and links rail, road and sea transport along the Auckland–Tauranga corridor.
Designed and constructed by Apollo Projects, it features advanced decarbonisation and energy‑efficiency technologies, including a transcritical CO₂ refrigeration system with waste heat recovery, condensate reuse for cooling‑tower misters, rainwater harvesting systems, a 1.52 MW rooftop solar array and electric forklifts.
Kylie Fraser, managing director of Maersk Oceania, stated that the rating “underscores our dedication to decarbonisation and innovation across both industrial development and supply chain logistics”, adding that cold chain logistics present a major opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The Ruakura cold storage project builds on a land‑lease agreement that Maersk signed in May 2022 with Tainui Group Holdings (TGH), the commercial arm of the Waikato-Tainui iwi. That agreement enabled Maersk to develop the facility on state‑owned land at the Ruakura Superhub, aligning with regional supply‑chain objectives.
A.P. Moller – Maersk A/S is a publicly listed global integrated logistics company operating in over 130 countries with approximately 100,000 employees. Its services span ocean shipping, port operations, inland logistics, and supply‑chain management.
