The Dunedin City Council decided against selling the company last year after emphatic public opposition to the idea.
Mr Radich, who ended up voting with most councillors to keep Aurora, said yesterday he was unaware of anyone campaigning in this year’s election to sell it.
The subject came up at a meeting yesterday when the council increased the debt ceiling for itself and its companies from $1.6b to $1.9b.
It increased the Dunedin City Holdings Ltd (DCHL) uncalled share capital to $1.9b.
Aurora is the largest trading company within the DCHL group.
On a good day, with the wind blowing in the right direction, the sale of [Aurora Energy] would repay all of that uncalled capital — all of that debt," Mr Radich said.
Throughout the process when the council was considering putting Aurora on the market, it did not disclose what an asking price might be, although any sale price had been tipped to comfortably exceed $1b.
Mr Radich said after yesterday’s meeting the $1.9b figure was my own optimistic possibility in extremely favourable conditions".
DCHL directors were more conservative than that, naturally enough".
Momentum towards a possible sale can be traced back to January 2023, when a draft letter of expectation to DCHL went before councillors.
Included was a clause asking DCHL to provide the council with strategic options for consideration (including consideration as to the future composition and direction of the portfolio)".
Mr Radich said yesterday the directors’ recommendation to sell Aurora was really a big surprise" to the council.
We then considered that and put it out for public consultation and we got a resounding ‘no — do not sell Aurora’.
We’re going to keep that company and we’re going to keep growing it.
That is what the public of Dunedin asked for in no uncertain terms."
Asked about the surprise factor, he said he had a range of ideas on what the DCHL directors might have come back with, but that didn’t include the sale of Aurora, hence I was surprised".
