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Whether its flying energy executives around the East Coast or transporting the son of the late Sir Howard Morrison around Taranaki for a Maori television programme, it’s all in a day’s work for Precision Helicopters. By Neil Ritchie.
TAG Oil chief executive Garth Johnson, and the listed company’s largest shareholder, Peter Loreto, flew from Vancouver to join Taranaki-based executives Drew Cadenhead and Carlos Kazianis on a fact-finding mission in late January. “They are firing up their operations in New Zealand and I flew them to the East Coast, where they have some extensive acreage, then to the Capital, to visit government organisations, and to Taranaki, where their Cheal oil field is,” recalls company managing director and chief pilot, Matt Newton. The TAG Oil energy executives were also impressed by what they saw, particularly the East Coast oil seeps. “They were pretty excited about it; the oil is literally in pools in some of the valleys. It was quite bizarre really and reminded me of the 1960s American television sitcom Beverley Hillbillies, where old Jed Clampett discovered oil, black gold, bubbling out of the ground.” He says that was the start of what seems to be a surge in energy related activity, primarily associated with onshore seismic surveys and some onshore drilling operations, for 2010. Newton says that last year PHL only helped with some seismic survey work for Todd Energy, from Oakura around the coast to Puniho, and for Greymouth Petroleum around Urenui further north. “However, this year looks very promising, so far, with jobs stacking up. We will be bringing some equipment back from the South Island to cope with demand. It’s not been this busy since 2007.” He says he knows of seismic work for Greymouth Petroleum, again around Urenui and near New Plymouth Airport, for Kea Petroleum, around Tarata, for L&M Energy, around Alton, and perhaps some on the East Coast. PHL owns four helicopters and leases one, and has bases at Blenheim, Greymouth and Gore for long-distance contracts. The company is also thinking of expanding further, perhaps to Papua New Guinea. “There is a high utilisation of choppers up there, usually five or six hours a day, seven days a week – a busy pilot is a happy pilot. “But PNG is a very competitive environment and we’ve yet to make a decision.” Recent staff additions to PHL include the employment of Englishman Chris Fordyce as general manager, and Garth Shaw as North Island base manager. “And we are a flying family at Precision Helicopters, flying’s in the blood.” “My father Harold Newton and Garth’s grandfather John Shaw both flew in World World II. Garth’s father Chris Shaw also is a helicopter pilot and now works in Australia. “On top of that, I am married to Garth’s sister Tammy,” says Newton.
Variety on the jobWork for the agricultural sector and the Department of Conservation remains Precision Helicopters’ “bread and butter”, with DOC and agricultural work keeping the business afloat through a flat 2009. Other regular assignments for PHL include tourism trips and flying pig hunters into rugged bush and then out again with their prey. And, now and then, out come the stars – be it Hollywood superstar Tom Cruise, who spent several months in Taranaki about six years ago during the filming of The Last Samurai movie, or budding Maori entertainer Howard Morrison Junior who visited the region for the first time last year. While Newton was Cruise’s personal helicopter pilot for four months, his time with Howard Morrison Jnr, son of the legendary entertainer who died last year, was shorter but just as enjoyable. “Howie and his television team were in Taranaki and Wanganui doing a programme for Aotearoa Television – we had a great time together. “He was quite taken with Taranaki, it was his first time here, and afterwards he said he wanted to come back to do another expedition. He was a real entertainer, just like his dad.”
Energy NZ Vol.4 No.2 March-April 2010 |
And after a quiet 2009, things are already looking up for Precision Helicopters this year, with a surge in the number of energy related contracts, including transporting executives of a Canadian oil and gas company to the East Coast, Wellington, and up to New Plymouth.