Since Gerry Brownlee's appointment as Energy and Resources Minister the National-led government has embarked on a programme of vigorous activity, centred on implementing election promises - and reforms - to ensure the energy sector can both contribute to economic growth and create prosperity for New Zealanders.
The Government has good cause to be pleased with the performance of the oil and gas industry since its election late 2008. The sector contributed $965 million in royalties and taxes to the Government coffers in 2008, $543 million of that was royalty payment alone.
In a year when oil was New Zealand’s third most valuable export commodity, our oil and gas industry suffered mixed fortunes.
The energy year 2009 was one of the most eventful and progressive in years and the upstream sector will be remembered for three broad themes.
Exploration might be increasing but most of it is still happening in Taranaki, with very little focus on frontier basins. L&M is one company with a focus on developing frontier energy resources in frontier basins, especially our coal seam gas resources in the South Island.
The National Grid has served us well for many decades. However, as the demand for electricity has increased, the system has become more highly loaded and is now nearing its operating capacity.
The electricity industry is in the midst of a phase of fairly fundamental change, driven partly by big shifts in the regulatory regime, and partly by the realities of new investment needs.
A surge of interest and awareness in household energy efficiency was the highlight of 2009 for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority.
The geothermal industry is the place to be at the moment, with a lot of development over the last few years and much more to come in the next few years.
At the beginning of 2009, New Zealand’s wind energy capacity was 325 megawatts. By the end of the year it had increased by 171MW to nearly 500MW.
The 2009 year looked like being a quiet year for marine energy but a late flurry of activity amongst the established projects gives confidence that 2010 will be one of important developments.
New Zealand’s economy, and our quality of life, has been built on the back of it strong hydro electric generation base and it’s the reason why we need new hydro development.
What a difference a year makes. Last year proved to be a period of really positive developments for the natural resources sector. So much so that I don’t think it would be overstating the case to say that a golden age beckons.
Last year was a tough year. We started the year focused on our long-term strategy of business expansion underpinned by high and predictable cash flows from our export coal business and, after five record months of revenue, our balance sheet was very strong.
The 2009 year could be described as the year of reducing uncertainty, and this was good for a number of reasons, not least of which was the encouragement it provided for investors to invest... or not, as the case may be.
Looking back to 2009, it was a time of enormous change, not only for New Zealand, but for the world, as we moved from the easy prosperity of the early years of the millennium into a deep global recession.
Over the past year, the energy and resource sector has seen several great advancements on both an international and domestic scale, as well as several key disappointments.
Energy perspectives - A foreword
Prospects for change loom large
Exploration round up
A promising year
Exploring new frontiers
The grid challenge
Changing face of electricity
Warming up New Zealand
Turning up the heat
Benign winds
Making waves
Back to the future
A golden age beckons
For the good of the country
Reducing uncertainty, increasing optimism
Supporting infrastructure
The sweet and the bitter