Hon Simeon
Brown
Minister for Energy
MBIE’s annual
Petroleum Reserves report detailing a 20 per cent reduction
in New Zealand’s natural gas reserves shows the need to
reverse the oil and gas exploration ban, Energy Minister
Simeon Brown says.
“Figures released by MBIE show
that there has been a 20 per cent reduction in New
Zealand’s natural gas proven plus probable reserves over
the past 12 months, dropping to 1,300 petajoules,” Mr
Brown says.
“While 44 per cent of this reduction has
been due to gas extraction and use, 30 per cent is due to
reserves being downgraded and 26 per cent due to reserves
being removed altogether as operators now understand the
relevant fields hold less gas than previously
thought.
“This report makes for very concerning
reading. New Zealand’s exporters and manufacturers need
more natural gas to power their businesses and produce
value-added goods to drive economic growth, but natural gas
production cannot currently meet demand.
“New
Zealand’s insufficient supply of gas to meet demand is
stifling economic growth and reducing our energy security.
Natural gas plays a critical role in firming our electricity
generation, particularly when intermittent renewable energy
sources such as wind and solar are not
generating.
“MBIE’s report states that
New Zealand’s gas reserves represent only 8.7 years of
use, and that deliverability of gas from current fields will
continue to decline.
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“Reduced gas
availability means that firms will look to other sources of
energy, such as coal, to meet demand. Coal has around twice
the carbon intensity of natural gas for the same amount of
energy. We are already seeing more coal being used to firm
New Zealand’s largely renewable electricity sector simply
because the required natural gas has not been made
available.
“The previous government’s legacy is
one of reduced economic output and an increased reliance
upon high emissions coal to meet our energy needs,” Mr
Brown says.
The Coalition Government is working hard
to ensure New Zealand’s energy security
by:
- Reversing the ban on oil and gas
exploration
This important piece of work to
secure our energy security is being led by Resources
Minister Shane Jones and is a commitment under both the NZ
First and ACT coalition agreements with
National. - Enabling Carbon Capture
Utilisation and Storage (CCUS)
CCUS is used
overseas to significantly reduce the emissions from gas use.
The Government has begun consultation on an enabling regime
for the technology in New Zealand. - Taking
immediate action with the Gas Security Response
Group
The GSRG It brings together gas producers,
major gas users and the Government to focus on gas supply
and demand issues, in both the short and longer term. It is
considering ways in which we can ensure natural gas gets to
those that need it most, including schools, tertiary
institutions, and hospitals as part of the All-of-Government
contract.
“The Coalition Government is
committed to ensuring New Zealand’s energy security. We
are working at pace to reverse the policies that have got us
into this position and to restore investment confidence to
the energy
sector.”
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