Gas Agreement Not Disclosed

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30965, 22 January 1966, Page 1

Gas Agreement Not Disclosed

GVew Zealand Press Association)

NEW PLYMOUTH, Jan. 21.

Natural gas will be piped to New Plymouth customers in two years if the Government approves the proposal to pipe Kapuni gas throughout the North Island.

An agreement to fakp tho <ra<s wa <s . j k g -i approved by a special meeting of the New Plymouth City Council today.

“It is a turning point in thei history of the country to have' natural gas,” said the chairman of the council’s electricity and gas committee, Mr R. J Burkitt. The special meeting was held because the Government required an answer by February 1. The agreement is between the council as purchaser • and the Minister of Mines (Mr Shand), as trustee for the proposed New Zealand Pipeline Corporation. Mr Burkitt moved that discussion on the agreement be held in committee. He said the Government was still negotiating with "the oil people" and “the other side” should not know the details of the agreement. Mr A. B. Scanlan asked if the Government had sought an in-committee discussion. Mr Burkitt said that this had been requested so that the business figures involved could be kept private. It was doubtful if the full figures would ever be made public. The council did not advertise what it Paid for its electricity.

Giving such figures, which were normally kept private in business, could cause all sorts of complications, said Mr Burkitt. The nine gas concerns involved in the pipeline proposals —New Plymouth, Hawera, Wellington, Auckland, Palmerston North, Lower Hutt, Levin. Hamilton and Wanganui—had been asked to consider the agreement in committee when they met recently in Wellington.

After a discussion in committee the council approved a statement outlining the agreement. It said that Mr Shand proposed to act for the Pipeline Corporation until it was ready' to operate. I

The corporation would build run and operate pipelines from the Kapuni field to the nine undertakings. Sufficient natural gas would be provided for a full service on or before April 1, 1968, with gas for preparatory testing on and after February 1, 1968. If Mr Shand could not enter into satisfactory agreements with the undertakings by February 1 this year, he could terminate the agreement by March 15. The council agreed to be ready to begin a service to customers in April, 1968.