NZ grants seven exploration permits

Harry Duynhoven

New Zealand has granted seven oil and gas exploration permits, associate energy minister Harry Duynhoven said today.

Greymouth Petroleum, Highland Exploration Corp, and Hugh Green Energy had been granted offshore permits as a result of the Taranaki-Wanganui bidding round.

A further four exploration permits have been issued outside the bidding round -- one to Hugh Green Energy, one to Westech Energy NZ, and two to L&M Petroleum.

"Today's announcement, and the upcoming Great South Basin blocks offer, shows that the pace of exploration in New Zealand continues to grow," Mr Duynhoven said.

New Zealand had an enormous range of exploration potential which was attracting interest from small, independent domestic and international companies through to the super-major oil companies, he said.

Interest had increased following last month's decision by the owners of the Kupe field to push ahead with a $1 billion production development.

Mr Duynhoven said the Great South Basin, with 400,000sq km on offer, had the scale to attract the largest oil companies.

Hugh Green Energy, a unit of Hugh Energy Investments, which owned 19.9 per cent of listed Dorchester Pacific plus property and farming interests, has bought a 3775sq km block adjacent to the Wanganui coast.

It has also acquired a exploration permit for 3490sq km in the onshore Wanganui basin, adjacent to its offshore permit.

The block awarded to Highland Exploration was a 297sq km block about 40km north of the offshore Pohokura mining permit offshore from Taranaki. Highland Exploration is a Colorado-based company affiliated to Bridge Exploration.

The permit awarded to Greymouth Petroleum comprises a 50sq km coastal block northeast of New Plymouth.

Greymouth Petroleum is a privately controlled by Mark Dunphy, a former executive at merchant bank Fay Richwhite.

It operates the Turangi, Ngatoro, Kaimiro and Goldie fields and planned to become a low-cost integrated energy company with energy assets from gas through to power generation.

Westech Energy, a subsidiary of Energy Corp of America, has been granted a 5551sq km onshore permit in the Hawke's Bay and Poverty Bay.

It has been drilling a series of six wells south of Hamilton and has extensive exploration and production activities in the United States, Taranaki and on the East Coast of New Zealand.

L&M Petroleum has been awarded two exploration permits of 969sq km and 486sq km in the West-Southland Basin. It is part of the L&M Group with exploration interests in petroleum, gold, coal and lignite.

- NZPA