Cabinet has approved a smaller, cheaper plan to fix up Scott Base, New Zealand's research station in Antarctica. The original plan was paused after the board realised it could not be done within the original budget (RNZ).

The revised plan would add about 1,500 square metres to the base. That is roughly the size of three or four tennis courts. It includes a new Base Services Building, replacing old water and power systems, and doing up the existing Hillary Field Centre rather than knocking it down and starting fresh. Antarctica New Zealand board chair Leon Grice led the reset process.

Construction would start in October. But building in Antarctica is only possible from October to February, when conditions allow it. Everything needed for an October start has to be shipped by the previous February. Miss that window and you lose a whole year.

New Zealand has had a continuous presence at Scott Base since 1957. The base is on Ross Island and is the centre of this country's Antarctic science work.

The project has a long history. Budget 2021 allocated $306 million for the redevelopment (Beehive), and the base was discussed at a post-Cabinet press conference on 14 October 2024, when Brian Roche chaired Antarctica New Zealand's board (Beehive). In June 2025, Antarctica New Zealand announced a new construction partner and laid out a masterplan for three stages of work over 20 to 50 years. The first stage targets the oldest and most worn-out parts of the base (Antarctica New Zealand).

According to Antarctica New Zealand's 2024/25 Science Achievements Report, the business case was expected to go to Cabinet for approval in 2026, with the first stage done by 2030. Cabinet's sign-off now lines up with that timeline.

What Cabinet has approved is less than the full replacement originally planned. The most visible cut is refurbishing the Hillary Field Centre instead of building a new one. But the most important work may be the infrastructure — the water and power systems. If those fail, the base cannot function no matter how good the buildings are.

The broader question is whether this is the right order of priorities. Fixing the water and power first makes sense, but it means some of the oldest buildings will stay in use longer than planned. The 20-to-50-year timeline also means future governments will need to keep funding the project over many elections. Each of the three stages needs its own Cabinet approval, and a delay in one stage pushes the next one back.

The Antarctic building season leaves no room for mistakes. There is no spare time to absorb shipping delays or problems with suppliers.

It is also worth noting that the $306 million set aside in 2021 was before inflation pushed up the cost of building materials and shipping. Whether the new plan fits within that original budget or needs extra government funding is something the Cabinet paper should clarify. The publicly available information does not yet say what the scaled-back version will cost in total.

The key point for politicians and officials is timing. An October start means all materials have to be at the port and on a ship by February 2027 at the latest. From Cabinet sign-off, that gives the government and Antarctica New Zealand about six months to get everything organised. Any further delay could push the start to the 2028 season.