Shane Jones says Government will investigate reopening the Marsden Point oil refinery

Wednesday, 20 March 2024

The Government will investigate reopening the Marsden Point oil refinery that closed in 2022, Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones says.

That is despite the owner of the former refinery, Channel Infrastructure, saying in November that it believed that would cost billions of dollars as it had been fully decommissioned and there was “no part that could be restarted”.

Jones appeared to acknowledge earlier this month that the moment to save the refinery had passed, telling The Post that “sadly the Marsden Point decision has come and gone”.

But the coalition agreement between the National Party and NZ First commits the Government to investigate the reopening of the refinery, as well as to commissioning a study into the country’s fuel security and establishing “a fuel security plan”.

Jones said on Wednesday that the Government would investigate the feasibility of reopening the refinery as part of the work to ensure New Zealand had a secure fuel supply.

“When the Marsden Point oil refinery closed, not only did it rob Northland of a major employer, but it also potentially put New Zealand’s fuel security at risk. It was responsible for producing the majority of our jet fuel, all shipping fuel oil and more than half of our diesel,” Jones said.

“A significant and sustained disruption to our engine fuels would cripple our industries and put New Zealanders in hardship. That’s why I am commissioning this study into New Zealand’s fuel security requirements.”

The First Union campaigned to prevent the refinery’s closure.

Its national oil and gas coordinator Justin Wallace said in November that the “footprint” of the refinery was still there but Channel Infrastructure had dismantled its key components as soon as they were able and between 80% and 90% of the staff who had worked at the refinery had left the company.

“They've gone overseas, taken redundancy, or retired.”

Unless the Government was willing to tax more people to find more money to rebuild it, reopening it was “a pipe dream”, he said then.

Jones said the Government’s study was expected to begin later this year.