Seabed mining is back in the spotlight as Trans Tasman Resources submits second application for consent to mine off the South Taranaki coast.

New Zealand Oil & Gas says exploration drilling of the Barque prospect in the Canterbury Basin, which has the potential to be the nation's biggest-ever hydrocarbon discovery, is expected to start in 2017.

Oil rose after Iran's nuclear accord with world powers left the timing of increased crude supplies from the Opec member uncertain and as Saudi Arabia raised prices for shipments to Asia.

Just over one month since its last downgrade of Moscow's credit rating, Moody's said Russia "is expected to experience a deep recession in 2015 and a contraction in 2016".

Oil bulls finally caught a break as prices capped their first weekly advance since November.

Boart Longyear has posted a steep loss and says it will review its operations after having slashed almost 3500 jobs in the past year.

Oil and gas exploration plans such as Shell's for Southland should be subject to the rigours of a public hearing, writes Gary Taylor.

Editorial: Just a year ago, the prospects for oil and gas exploration in this country looked bleak. It is particularly welcome, hence, that Shell has announced it will drill an exploratory well in the Great South Basin.

Editorial: The final outcome of the Rena grounding was far from the environmental disaster initially forecast.

A Greenpeace-commissioned report shows dramatic blow-out effects of a deep-sea oil spill, but the industry says it's "science fiction".

A report into the oil and gas sector says the "rubber's finally hitting the road" with $2.2 billion about to be spent exploring around New Zealand.

This week, dozens of people from the international oil industry are in the capital for a conference.

New Zealand Oil & Gas says it should have been developing new oil fields by now as reserves at its producing assets dwindle.

Nearly three in four New Zealanders support a law change to restrict protest near deep-sea drilling rigs or ships exploring for oil and gas.

Al-Qaeda's Syrian wing is financing its activities by selling oil from the fields that once helped to prop up the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

Sam Judd takes a look at the good side of genetic modification and how breakthroughs in a highly-criticised area of science could help the environment.

A major oil and gas conference starting today will hear from a former United States prosecutor selected by the Obama Administration to beef up offshore drilling rules.

New Zealand company Todd Corporation is providing financial backing for a planned $1.3 billion methanol plant that will be the largest in North America.

Todd Energy report says mining technique is used safely in NZ.

Canadian oil company Apache has been talking up the prospects for onshore oil finds on the North Island's East Coast and is trying to play concerns about fracking and the local environment.