New oil and gas discovery in Taranaki welcomed
The announcement of a positive result from OMV鈥檚 oil and gas exploration well in the Taranaki Basin is very exciting and promising news, says the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association of New Zealand (PEPANZ).
OMV has today announced a positive result from the Toutouwai-1 exploration well which drilled 50km off the Taranaki coast earlier this month. Preliminary results show positive findings for hydrocarbons (natural gas and oil).
鈥淩eports of the demise of our sector have been greatly and prematurely exaggerated,鈥� says PEPANZ Chief Executive John Carnegie.
鈥淭his is good news at a time when New Zealand鈥檚 economy really needs it.
鈥淭here is still plenty of work to be done before any development is confirmed, but the potential benefits to Taranaki and all New Zealand are substantial.
鈥�42% of the profits from any new well goes to the taxpayer in royalties and taxes, and any new development would likely mean new jobs and export earnings.
鈥淚t could also help our long-term energy security given we have less than 11 years of natural gas reserves left. We need affordable and reliable energy to rebuild our economy and power our export industries.
鈥淲e haven鈥檛 had a commercial discovery since 2006. If we don鈥檛 develop our own energy then we are at the mercy of overseas producers, and could end up importing LNG. We think it鈥檚 much better to produce our own energy here in New Zealand instead.
鈥淭he energy provided by natural gas and oil still has a very important role to play as we transition to a lower emissions world.鈥�
*Further information: a report by energy analyst John Kidd of Enerlytica has been released and is attached:聽Commercial and policy issues, challenges and opportunities that exploration success in the Taranaki Basin or Great South Basin could present to New Zealand.