Natural gas isn’t something most people worry about. It heats the shower in the morning and others cook their dinner with it. For most Kiwis, gas is something that fires up the barbie. Most people are used to flicking the switch on in the morning and...
One of New Zealand’s great philosophers, Rachel Hunter once said "it won’t happen overnight, but it will happen." And that sage advice is particularly apt when it comes to the development of new energy technologies. Many who have advocated for the ban on new exploration of...
Many New Zealand home-owners are going to be opening power bills in coming months and getting a shock as sky-high wholesale electricity prices hit home. A combination of low hydro lake levels and a shortage of gas (only temporary this time) from a production outage...
Energy Voices has been able to spark a good debate about the decision to end new oil and natural gas exploration. It is sad that this discussion wasn’t held before the decision that was made. But at least now people are grappling with the various points...
Much fuss has been made by government ministers and other ban supporters about how New Zealand is leading the world by banning new exploration for offshore oil and natural gas. The Prime Minister announced the government’s ban in April, just before her first international trip...
We’ve explained why the ban on new exploration for oil and gas will increase carbon emissions and the impact on regional New Zealand. We think this is a bad idea. It’s not part of any plan and it’s not clear what it is trying to achieve....
A visitor to Taranaki is struck by the high standards of living compared to other regions. While remote from Auckland or Wellington, Taranaki’s per-capita GDP is $70,863 rather than the per-capita $39,896 for Gisborne. The difference has been the prolonged investment in developing oil and...
First up, let’s be clear – nothing in the exploration ban does anything to reduce use of oil or natural gas in New Zealand. So we will have the same demand for oil and natural gas as before the ban, but it won’t be pumped...
1. Where exactly are the new, high tech, well-paid jobs going to come from to replace those jobs lost in the oil and natural gas sector? Buzzwords like innovation and leading-edge sound great on a Wellington whiteboard but real people are losing good jobs right now...