Waitaki district ratepayers have benefited to the tune of $3.1 million from the Waitaki District Council's ownership of contractor Whitestone Ltd.
The company has presented its half-yearly report to the council, which shows a surplus after tax of $175,723 for the first six months of this financial year, compared with a $26,765 deficit for the corresponding period in the previous year.
Company chairman Donald Taylor was confident the company could do better in the second half of this financial year, with more than $5 million of work scheduled.
‘‘I am confident the second six months will exceed the first. The company is trading well with plenty of forward work,'' Mr Taylor told the council at its meeting on Tuesday.
However, he also warned the contracting industry was challenging and competitive.
Costs, particularly for fuel, were increasing and squeezing margins, he said.
The company, which is wholly owned by the council, was formed in 1991. Since then, it has paid the council $3.1 million in surpluses.
