The sale of the scheme's water shares and development shares had been originally set down for March 10 to April 10, but was extended to April 28 to give farmers and bankers time for last-minute paperwork connected with the 21,000ha scheme, located between the Waitaki River and Timaru.
Despite the failure to get the numbers, Hunter Downs Water chairman Andrew Fraser said the attitudes of those behind the proposal were still positive.
He said enough people showed support for some type of irrigation scheme to go ahead, but just not what was proposed.
He refused to say how many people had bought shares or how many people the scheme lacked to go ahead.
It was tough out there and ``people are being cautious'', he said.
Mr Fraser said hopes were high building some sort of scheme using elements of the Hunter Downs design would start this year.
Hunter Downs Water project manager Stacey Scott earlier this year said the share sale was the last time people would be able to secure Waitaki River water.
``A consent of this magnitude will not be gained again.''
She said people might believe they could drill for water in the future or rely on tanks, but those options were not guaranteed to be reliable.
