US oil spill firm linked to NZ prospecting

One of the companies responsible for the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico near the United States is a shareholder in exploration plans off the south Canterbury coast.

An undersea well has been spewing 757,060 litres a day since an April 20 explosion aboard the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon that killed 11 workers.

US oil company Anadaco owned a 25 per cent share in the well and had recently completed 50:50 deal with Australia's Origin Energy to prospect for oil and gas in the Canterbury Basin near Dunedin, Radio New Zealand reported.

Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee said he was not concerned about the New Zealand situation.

"New Zealand has very high environmental standards and particularly, safety requirements. Just what happened in the Gulf at the moment seems somewhat unclear and I think the whole of the oil producing world will be wanting to find out exactly what went wrong to make sure that if it was something that can be mitigated against, that's what happens."

- NZPA