Councillor raises concerns over oil drilling in Great South Basin

Friday, 10 January 2020

A drilling rig commissioned by oil giant OMV arrives in New Zealand last year to drill 12 exploratory drilling wells off the coast of Taranaki. Credit: Geoff Reid

An OMV oil rig has begun drilling in the Great South Basin this week.

The COSL Prospector is in place off the coast of Otago, between Dunedin and Invercargill, and in the process of drilling its first of what could be up to 10 exploration and appraisal wells.

Environment Southland councillor Robert Guyton has raised concerns over the exploratory operation, which he said shows a disregard for the climate crisis.

'All the fossil fuel they extract will end up as in the atmosphere as gigatons of greenhouse gases,' he said.

Protestors gathered outside at the Distinction Dunedin Hotel where Environmental Protection Authority hearings were held for OMV's marine discharge application.

* Spill risks among reasons public needs input into Otago oil exploration plan: Greenpeace

* Oil giant OMV granted approval to discharge harmful substance off Otago coast**

Austrian oil and gas company OMV was granted consent by the Environmental Protection Authority to carry out exploratory drilling on the Great South Basin in December.

OMV was also granted permission to discharge trace amounts of harmful substances (up to 250ml per event) from the deck drains of a Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit in September.

The drilling consent was based on a permit OMV obtained in 2007 – before the Government announced its decision to ban new offshore exploration permits in 2018.

The applications were for non-notified activities, meaning public submissions were unable to be sought.

Hearings were held for the discharge consent in Dunedin between July 30 and August 1, 2019, where protesters raised their concerns.

Councillor Robert Guyton speaking at an Environment Southland Climate Emergency council meeting in June 2019.

The conditions imposed by the EPA require these substances to be diluted twice before making it into the ocean.

OMV is also required to notify the EPA within 24 hours of a spill, or as soon as reasonably possible.

Environment Southland policy and planning manager Lucy Hicks said the organisation didn't have a view on the project but, 'in line with our role under the Resource Management Act, we support the sustainable management of natural resources.'

OMV Australasia senior vice president Gabriel Selischi said the company had sought regulatory approval from Maritime NZ, the EPA and WorkSafe NZ to make sure any environmental impacts could be avoided.

'The consent process was a highly detailed, technical, and comprehensive process, and OMV had put a great deal of work into ensuring all aspects of the drilling programme are world's best practice,' he said.

Selischi pointed out that the Tawhaki-1 well – which is currently being drilled – is the 15th well in the Great South Basin.

The area has been under exploration since the 1960s and while no-one's struck oil yet, hydrocarbons were present in many of the wells.

Selischi believed the Great South Basin held some of New Zealand's largest remaining oil reserves.

OMV will use the 'latest technologies in terms of seismic data interpretation' to target new areas, he said.

'OMV's preparation has been intense and very confident we've done everything people would expect of us,' Selischi said.

The company is only drilling one well for now and as Hicks said any extraction operations would be subject to publicly notified applications.

'These would be considered by a Board of Inquiry appointed by the Minister for the Environment,' the EPA said in a press statement.

A find in the Great South Basin would be the first new gas discovery since 2006, Selischi said.

'A commercial success could potentially address a number of significant issues associated with New Zealand's future energy supply,' he said.