An Auckland Council-owned agency may have to pay costs to oil company Mobil after a legal wrangle over cleaning up prime harbourside land.
Mobil leased parts of the land from the 1950s but left in 2011.
Waterfront Auckland went to the High Court arguing that Mobil should have handed back parts around Wynyard Quarter free of contamination and said it wanted $10 million.
The agency is looking after New Zealand's largest urban revitalisation in the area.
Waterfront Auckland said a clause in new leases signed in 1985 required Mobil to give the land back in a clean and tidy condition.
But the High Court said some of the heavy contamination of the area was caused by others. It said the clause was untenable and unrealistic, and Waterfront Auckland's claims had entirely failed.
The agency is deciding whether it will appeal against the ruling.
