Quote Originally Posted by Onion View Post
Rob Oram spoke about gas prices to Kathryn Ryan and brings some common sense to the debate (discussion about gas starts just after 15 minutes):

https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/p...tator-rod-oram


  • He noted that there is still scope for new onshore exploration and discovery in Taranaki; where the infrastructure to use it already exists
  • 45% of gas is used to create Methanol (a cheap commodity) - debatable value to NZ economy
  • Compared NZ gas prices ($26.20USD/GJ) with those in the US ($9.20USD/GJ) so NZ gas prices from established field is already much higher than international market
I see this as a negative all around, fewer jobs and New Zealand looking like an uncertain place to do business. Government intervention hardly ever ends well.

"Debatable value" really gets to the heart of the matter for me. Markets that are allowed to operate mean no debate is necessary.