{"id":284695,"date":"2026-02-15T02:21:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T02:21:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/284695\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T02:21:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T02:21:10","slug":"dont-put-it-alongside-us-liquified-natural-gas-safety-fears-raised-in-taranaki","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/284695\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Don’t put it alongside us’: Liquified Natural Gas safety fears raised in Taranaki"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Port<\/p>\n

\nPort Taranaki nestles alongside New Plymouth’s western suburbs, Ng\u0101 Motu Marine Protected Area and the adjacent Tapuae Marine Reserve (Te Korimako o Taranaki).
\nPhoto: LDR \/ Supplied\n<\/p>\n

Community energy lobbyists say a Liquified Natural Gas terminal in Taranaki must be built far from homes to protect locals from the risk of catastrophic explosions.<\/p>\n

The government plans to build an import terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG)<\/a> in Taranaki to fill the gap left by the region’s emptying gas fields.<\/p>\n

Minister of Energy Simon Watts said shipping-in LNG would end the “dry year risk” when hydroelectricity lake levels drop, causing energy price spikes.<\/p>\n

Natural gas is chilled to -160C, turning it liquid for ocean tanker transportation.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/<\/p>\n

\nPhoto:\n<\/p>\n

It’s then pumped ashore for “gasification”: heating and expanding 600-fold back into gas, ready for distribution via existing pipelines.<\/p>\n

Taranaki Energy Watch said highly explosive LNG is too dangerous near homes and workplaces.<\/p>\n

Spokesperson Sarah Roberts said the risk of leaks was greatest during transfer to shore.<\/p>\n

If a small leak ignited and ruptured a storage tank, the resulting blast would be catastrophic for New Plymouth, she said.<\/p>\n

“Even with the smallest of these LNG proposals, the storage tanks could hold 20 times the energy of the huge explosion that decimated so much of Beirut.”<\/p>\n

More than 200 people died, and 7000 were injured when ammonium nitrate blew up at Beirut’s port in 2020.<\/p>\n

“The suburbs of Moturoa, Parit\u016bt\u016b and Blagdon are most at risk if LNG lands at Port Taranaki.”<\/p>\n

Roberts said a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit moored away from land and connected to existing offshore gas pipelines would be safer and cheaper.<\/p>\n

“They are locking in gas, making us pay for it, without showing it works environmentally or economically.”<\/p>\n

“But if they are deadset on this bad idea, don’t put it alongside us at New Plymouth’s port.”<\/p>\n

The energy minister said LNG was safely handled, converted to gas, and transported in many countries.<\/p>\n

Watts said he expects to sign a contract for the LNG terminal in the middle of the year.<\/p>\n

The minister wouldn’t discuss the government’s shortlisted proposals, citing commercial sensitivities.<\/p>\n

But he said there were a range of ways to build and operate an LNG terminal.<\/p>\n

“It is very possible that an LNG import facility in New Zealand will be ship-based – a floating storage and regasification unit, or floating storage unit.”<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

\nThe port’s industrial area has long focused on petrochemicals, with the tank farm and the former Dow agrichemical plant features of the neighbourhood.
\nPhoto: LDR \/ Supplied\n<\/p>\n

The government was talking regularly with the LNG terminal at Port Kembla in New South Wales and had spoken with the Singaporean terminal.<\/p>\n

“All the accelerated delivery solution proposals are located in and around Taranaki,” Watts confirmed.<\/p>\n

Climate Justice Taranaki spokesperson Tuhi-Ao Bailey said that made Port Taranaki the most likely site, with P\u0101tea or one of three offshore production stations also possible.<\/p>\n

“Both ports have lots of M\u0101ori and low-income residents who’ve already suffered years of boom-and-bust industry and impacts of industrial chemical exposure,” Bailey said.<\/p>\n

Bailey is also Taranaki iwi’s representative on the Policy and Planning committee at Taranaki Regional Council, which owns Port Taranaki.<\/p>\n

She said locals shouldn’t bear the risk of “an unaffordable, gas-emitting, highly explosive LNG plant, likely right next to a marine reserve and popular beach in the middle of our city.”<\/p>\n

“New Plymouth is the sunniest place in the country.”<\/p>\n

“The government instead should be investing in decentralised and affordable solar power, and building energy efficiency, public transport and local economies.”<\/p>\n

Taranaki iwi extends along the back of the Port industrial area, from Parit\u016bt\u016b around the coast.<\/p>\n

Its environmental management plan said: “Taranaki Iwi supports, and will advocate for, clean technology initiatives and activities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions”.<\/p>\n

Te K\u0101hui o Taranaki tumu whakarito Damon Ritai said the iwi agency required more research and due diligence before commenting on the LNG terminal.<\/p>\n

Port Taranaki mana whenua Ng\u0101ti te Whiti and their wider Te \u0100tiawa iwi are yet to comment.<\/p>\n

Watts said the government would design an import model bringing in “large shipments only when needed”, which would later become a “fuel source for industrial, commercial and residential users”.<\/p>\n

A levy on power companies would pay the cost of perhaps a billion dollars<\/a> for the LNG plant.<\/p>\n

That will hit power bills, but the government said the hike would be balanced out by stabilised energy prices.<\/p>\n

The Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment advised that the terminal would effectively cap gas prices.<\/p>\n

Watts has promised modest household savings, calculated at less than a dollar a week.<\/p>\n

– LDR is local body reporting funded by RNZ and NZ on Air<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Port Taranaki nestles alongside New Plymouth’s western suburbs, Ng\u0101 Motu Marine Protected Area and the adjacent Tapuae Marine…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":284696,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[48,138,47,111,43,139,69,49,46,44,45],"class_list":{"0":"post-284695","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-audio","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-current-affairs","11":"tag-new-zealand","12":"tag-news","13":"tag-newzealand","14":"tag-nz","15":"tag-podcasts","16":"tag-public-radio","17":"tag-radio-new-zealand","18":"tag-rnz"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/284695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=284695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/284695\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/284696"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=284695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=284695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=284695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}