“We actually put in an interest for Whakapapa 18 months back, we got right to the end of it… the Crown just shut us off at the 12th hour.

“It was a let-down. But we didn’t cry. We just carried on. That’s what we’re doing,” Tūroa said.

Earlier this year, Whakapapa Holdings and Pure Tūroa were granted 10-year concession by DoC to operate the north and south sides of the maunga respectively.

The previous owner went into receivership in 2022 and the successful bid by the private companies came as a relief to Ruapehu Mayor Weston Kirton, who said the ski fields were vital to the district’s economy.

Tūroa said he did not want the companies to be kicked off the mountain, but wanted the iwi to have more say on how the maunga was operated.

“It’s an activity that our people, and New Zealanders, and foreigners come to do. It just needs to be run better.

“We still have no co-existence with iwi, our people, in this, and that’s where the breakdown is,” Tūroa said.

Potaka said in a statement it would not be appropriate to comment as the matter was before the courts.

– RNZ