GDP growth twice as strong as forecasters picked despite earthquake

A top geologist was so concerned with the Pike River mine that she asked her husband, also a geologist, not to enter the mine in 2010. She said Pike River Coal did not have a proper understanding of the geology of its coal mine, and had...

The gloves have come off for the first time in the Pike River commission of inquiry, with Solid Energy chief executive Don Elder taking "great offence" at suggestions he is trying to lower the mine's value prior to sale.

Blast shouldn't have happened in a modern mine, says Solid Energy chief.

Families of the 29 victims of last year's Pike River mine disaster will seek answers on how their loved ones died when the Royal Commission into one of the country's worst disasters opens in Greymouth tomorrow.

John Key says families of dead miners would expect every effort to retrieve them.