Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / John Carnegie: Energy Resources Aotearoa CEO on Methanex's proposal to cut staff and downsize to one plant

Transcript

John Carnegie: Energy Resources Aotearoa CEO on Methanex's proposal to cut staff and downsize to one plant · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Another blow for regional New Zealand. The country's largest gas user,
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: method X has proposed to scale down its operations for
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: the foreseeable future. So they had two plants that have
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: been shut until the end of October to save gas.
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: Now the company is consulting on only turning one of
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: them back on. That means fewer jobs. John Carnegie's with
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: us is the Energy Resources Alted are John, Good morning,
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: Good morning, Ryan. Now, I know that method X is
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: a member of your organization, so you can't speak too
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: much about specifics. Do you think there's a chance that
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: they could pull out of New Zealand altogether?
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: Oh? Look, well that depends on how much guess we
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: are new guest production we get. So we're certainly hoping
• 0:41
  Speaker 2: hoping not. This is this is devastating, potentially devastating for
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: regional New Zealand and nationally. Actually, Ryan, do.
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: You have any update on the governments because obviously there's
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: a task force going on that's looking at issues, there's
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: a wider review going on. Have you had any meaningful
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: update from the government on plans for those upstream gas producers?
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: Well, yes, the government has made a number of announcements
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: with respect to the or in the gas sector. But
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: actually what we need to see as we want it
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: to move more quickly, they actually make the changes it's promised,
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: because of course we haven't seen a bill in the
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: House yet. Unfortunately, finding our energy system lurching from crisis
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: to crisis seems to be an entirely predictable result of
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: the shop all and guests being in twenty eighteen.
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: Have you had any chats with Labor or have they
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: reached out to you at all as an industry organization
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: to say what exactly is it you need, you know,
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: we want to talk about our policy, our energy policy,
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  Speaker 1: anything like that in recent months.
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: I yes, we engage with all political parties and and
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: we've certainly engaged with the Labor Party. But from what
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: I can ascertain, their policy position, their current policy position
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: is going to be dis same as the ones that
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: took into the election last year.
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: And what does that mean for confidence and investing?
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: I mean, what it does Ryan is it is it
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: leaves a massive hole in the confidence of investors. In fact,
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: right across the spectrum of fossil fuel use, So it's
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: not just production, but it's also if you have plans
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: for a guest fired power station or in fact, there
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: are some discussions recently going on around L and G.
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: The result of the Labor Party continuing to say it
• 2:59
  Speaker 2: will maintain or re establish the oil and guest band
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: being I see even musing about whether or not onslow
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: to pump hydro scheme will be back on the table.
• 3:11
  Speaker 2: It just creates a massive, massive sovereign risk and dampens
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: the desire of those who might be interested in making
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: those investments.
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: John, thank you very much for joining us this one, John,
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: I really appreciate it, especially so early. John Carnegie the
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: Energy Resources out Heed A METHODIX is a member of
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: that organization. I do also want to say that we
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: did ask the leader and the energy spokesperson for Labor
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: to come on, weren't available at this hour. We also
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: asked the gas producers, the upstream gas producers Todd and Omb.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: We also asked Methnix to come on as well. They're
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: not talking at the moment while they consult on this proposal.
• 3:47
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• 3:50
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• 3:51
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• 3:54
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