A Whangarei hapu, Patuharakeke, says it's slow, but it is making progress in its negotiations with the Crown over ancestral land that Mighty River Power is keen to sell.
The hapu has been seeking an urgent hearing in the Waitangi Tribunal to stop the sale and filed an injunction in the Whangarei High Court to halt the tender process for the state-owned lands which fall within its rohe.
The lawyer for the hapu said it had a hui in Ruakaka with the Office of Treaty Settlements at the beginning of August.
Prue Kapua said the Crown had advised that it was now in negotiation with Mighty River Power.
She said the Crown intended to buy two memorialised blocks to be landbanked, so they could possibly be incorporated in to future Treaty settlements.
Ms Kapua said the Crown was going through the due diligence process at the moment, and said it was relatively positive about the purchase taking place.
She said the Crown had also given an undertaking that there would be no sales of the remaining blocks which were not memorialised until at least October.
Ms Kapua said Patuharakeke was hopeful there would be an urgent hearing before then.
