Invercargill Businessman Named ONZM
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Scott O'Donnell has been made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to business — recognition that spans trucking, hydrogen fuel, a $180 million city centre overhaul, and a dementia care village on the edge of Invercargill.
O'Donnell has spent his career expanding H W Richardson Group well beyond its transport roots, steering the family-connected company into petroleum, rural transport and waste. He was appointed CEO in 2016. Under his watch, HWR backed the development of New Zealand's first hydrogen-diesel dual-fuel truck — a genuine first for the country, not just the region.
He also built out HWR's property portfolio into something Invercargill now trades heavily on as a visitor drawcard. The Classic Motorcycle Mecca, Toot Sweets, Bill Richardson Transport World, and The Lodges at Transport World all count O'Donnell's involvement in their development. These aren't peripheral projects — Transport World alone draws visitors from overseas specifically to see it.
As chair of Invercargill Central, he led the joint venture behind the $180 million redevelopment of the city centre. That project reshaped the heart of Invercargill at a scale few local developments have matched in recent decades.
Outside HWR, O'Donnell chairs Blue Sky Pastures Limited and sits on the board of MotorSport New Zealand. He's also a driver behind the George Begg Motorsport Festival, which has carved out its own reputation on the national motorsport calendar.
Hawthorndale Care Village, a dementia and elderly care facility, is another project he supported — a quieter contribution than the central city work, but one that serves a direct community need.
The ONZM was announced as part of the latest New Year Honours.