Auckland International Airport Ltd., which is New Zealand's leading firm, will spend NZ$27.7 million ($19 million) in purchasing a 25% stake in Queenstown Airport, which services the alpine resort town that is on the nation's South Island.

Auckland will take hold of new shares and has an alternative to raise its stake to as high as 35%, since it can become a part of a strategic alliance, it said in a statement sent to the stock exchange. Queenstown Airport has the country's fourth-largest number of visitors coming from overseas.

Auckland, which is the arrival point for no less than 70% of New Zealand's visitors, is spending in new terminals and alliances, so as to increase the levels of traffic in this region. In the month of January, it acquired a
25% stake in two airports in Australia's Queensland state.

Chief Executive Officer, Simon Moutter said that expansion in international passenger volumes can be accelerated by creating deeper partnerships with special and like-minded airports that share the development focus on definitive airlines and travel markets.

A formal coalition will hopefully increase the traffic further, with an added 176,000 passenger travels within five years.

Queenstown had 811,460 passengers travelling in the year that ended on June 30, according to today's report.