1 00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:09,000 Speaker 1: Questions, answers, Thanks analysis the drive show you trust for 2 00:00:09,080 --> 00:00:13,080 Speaker 1: the full picture. Heather Duplessy own drive with one New 3 00:00:13,160 --> 00:00:15,920 Speaker 1: Zealand let's get connected and news dogs. That'd be. 4 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:18,160 Speaker 2: Good afternoon. 5 00:00:18,200 --> 00:00:21,200 Speaker 3: There are reports that Shane Jones is investigating whether he 6 00:00:21,280 --> 00:00:24,080 Speaker 3: can or should ration our gas supply to keep certain 7 00:00:24,120 --> 00:00:27,479 Speaker 3: businesses going. Now this comes after Balance lost its gas 8 00:00:27,480 --> 00:00:31,360 Speaker 3: supply to Contact Energy so that Contact Energy could supply homes. 9 00:00:31,640 --> 00:00:33,839 Speaker 3: Shane Jones is the Associate Minister of Energy and with 10 00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:34,320 Speaker 3: us right now. 11 00:00:34,320 --> 00:00:37,720 Speaker 4: Hey Shane, hey, good, good afternoon. 12 00:00:37,880 --> 00:00:39,720 Speaker 2: Are you seriously considering rationing? 13 00:00:41,760 --> 00:00:43,600 Speaker 4: I will take on some advice as to how we 14 00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:46,560 Speaker 4: can dedicate the gas to the most important purpose from 15 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:50,680 Speaker 4: Andy Night at the gas company and our MB officials. Naturally, 16 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:52,760 Speaker 4: there's a lot of resistance to the idea of the 17 00:00:52,800 --> 00:00:56,600 Speaker 4: crown replacing the market. But I've got to tell you, 18 00:00:56,680 --> 00:00:59,520 Speaker 4: with the gas plummeting and the ability of gent tailors 19 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:02,240 Speaker 4: to burn or coal, we don't want to see them 20 00:01:02,280 --> 00:01:05,319 Speaker 4: profiting from too much gas at the cost of ordinary 21 00:01:05,400 --> 00:01:09,679 Speaker 4: Keiwis who are really living in grim circumstances in relation 22 00:01:09,760 --> 00:01:10,880 Speaker 4: to their business life. 23 00:01:11,040 --> 00:01:14,720 Speaker 2: Are you considering banning new gas connections on new builds. 24 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,160 Speaker 4: No, No, I'm aware that there is a proposal to 25 00:01:20,280 --> 00:01:25,039 Speaker 4: transition people in their homes away from gas to solar energy, 26 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:27,440 Speaker 4: and they've done that in aussy and that should be 27 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:30,160 Speaker 4: looked at. But I'm not in the business of banning 28 00:01:30,319 --> 00:01:35,119 Speaker 4: any gas experience. That was my unfortunate acquiescence six years ago, 29 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:37,399 Speaker 4: and hopefully you realize I've paid my penance. 30 00:01:37,440 --> 00:01:39,200 Speaker 2: Okay, So what happens if you do get into the 31 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:42,360 Speaker 2: rationing business. What happens to people who need gas to 32 00:01:42,440 --> 00:01:43,400 Speaker 2: run their stoves? 33 00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 4: Well, let's just step back. The first thing is we're 34 00:01:47,920 --> 00:01:50,200 Speaker 4: going to deploy some of this two hundred million dollars 35 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:53,120 Speaker 4: in the short term to accelerate the delivery of gas 36 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 4: amongst those limited number of companies that are still sinking 37 00:01:56,560 --> 00:02:00,160 Speaker 4: wells in Taranaki and can increase the amount of gases. 38 00:02:00,640 --> 00:02:04,600 Speaker 4: The bigger problem, however, is that the gas decline is 39 00:02:04,600 --> 00:02:09,080 Speaker 4: continuing down inexorably. Trying we are trying to work with 40 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:12,480 Speaker 4: firms to transition them onto electricity, but I got to 41 00:02:12,520 --> 00:02:16,560 Speaker 4: tell you, Heather, the electricity prices are still stupendously high, 42 00:02:16,639 --> 00:02:19,080 Speaker 4: and that won't change until we've tamed the animal spirits 43 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:20,079 Speaker 4: in the gentle toptually. 44 00:02:20,120 --> 00:02:22,359 Speaker 2: But listen, Shane, answer that question for me. If you 45 00:02:22,440 --> 00:02:25,040 Speaker 2: designed to ration and you give it to business ahead 46 00:02:25,040 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 2: of consumers who live in houses, what happens to the 47 00:02:27,639 --> 00:02:30,320 Speaker 2: houses that need to run gas through their stoves? What 48 00:02:30,360 --> 00:02:30,720 Speaker 2: do they do? 49 00:02:31,120 --> 00:02:34,320 Speaker 4: No, we're not We're not making any blood decisions. For example, 50 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:37,520 Speaker 4: we've got hospitals and schools that are dependent on gas. 51 00:02:38,040 --> 00:02:39,440 Speaker 4: So no, no, no, we're not going to make any 52 00:02:39,440 --> 00:02:41,639 Speaker 4: blunt decisions. We're going to first make sure that we've 53 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 4: got high quality advice and what is actually doable. And 54 00:02:45,280 --> 00:02:48,079 Speaker 4: that's why I would turn to arguably the cleverest man 55 00:02:48,080 --> 00:02:50,600 Speaker 4: about gas in New Zealand, the CEO of the gas company. 56 00:02:50,880 --> 00:02:53,160 Speaker 2: Listen, is this thermal co idea goer for you? 57 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:59,080 Speaker 4: Well, it originally started, I'm told, with Contact Energy before 58 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:03,600 Speaker 4: I had the portfolio, and well, you know, we've got 59 00:03:03,639 --> 00:03:06,440 Speaker 4: to move through the various options that the officials will 60 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:08,480 Speaker 4: provide to us, and we haven't got to that point. 61 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:12,400 Speaker 4: But their mixed views about it. One view is that 62 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:18,000 Speaker 4: the crown is absorbing the detritus of the gent tailors 63 00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:20,440 Speaker 4: will lay swe off and make more money, but that 64 00:03:20,520 --> 00:03:23,360 Speaker 4: won't be happening. Their glory days are over and the 65 00:03:23,400 --> 00:03:27,320 Speaker 4: other is if we need gas and coal, it's probably 66 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:29,760 Speaker 4: a good idea to ensure that we have our own 67 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:32,880 Speaker 4: reserves of coal rather than just bringing it in from Indonesia. 68 00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:35,400 Speaker 4: And if we're going to get more gas, either imported 69 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:38,960 Speaker 4: or extracted from our own land, then the government needs 70 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:41,280 Speaker 4: to have an integrally involved and that to keep the 71 00:03:41,320 --> 00:03:41,840 Speaker 4: lights on. 72 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:43,880 Speaker 2: Right Shane, thanks for your time. Shane Jones, the Associate 73 00:03:43,920 --> 00:03:44,760 Speaker 2: Minister of Energy. 74 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 1: For more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive, Listen live to 75 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:51,880 Speaker 1: news talks they'd be from four pm weekdays, or follow 76 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:53,640 Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio.