11/25/2021 | News release | Distributed by Public on 11/24/2021 23:55
A new law on decommissioning oil and gas fields passed by Parliament today has good intentions but is overkill, according to Energy Resources Aotearoa.
"We strongly support operators taking responsibility and paying the costs for decommissioning, which is what all good operators do," says chief executive John Carnegie.
"The problem is these changes go way above and beyond what's required to protect taxpayers.
"It's pleasing to see a few changes made at select committee stage, but many of the major problems highlighted by expert submitters remain.
"There is still duplication and costly over-layering, like requiring financial security as well as payments into a decommissioning fund.
"Former permit holders can still be held liable for fields they transferred and no longer have any input into the management of fields. This is a fundamental change to business law, and like moving the goal posts after the ball has been kicked.
"This is another blow to investment confidence at a time when our energy sector really needs new investment. This year we've seen blackouts, job losses and high prices for users thanks to an energy shortage.
"From here we'll work with officials to help the new regime work as well as possible."
Background information - expert submissions on the Bill:
These reports are available as part of Energy Resources Aotearoa's submission here.