Hi-tech priority as sun sets on oil, gas
The success of the economy will rely on technology in the wake of the Government’s decision to end offshore oil and gas exploration in New Zealand.
The oil and gas industry cried foul at the announcement made on Thursday. Many said it was made too soon, with not enough industry consultation.
At an Auckland event to launch the Climate Finance Landscape report yesterday, Climate Change Minister and Associate Finance Minister James Shaw said New Zealand was now looking at a ‘‘hi-tech, low-carbon’’ economy.
But Shaw was not sure what sectors would fill the economic gap left by divestment in the energy industry.
The Treasury was still deciding where to allocate the Government’s $1 billion clean technology and infrastructure fund, he said.
‘‘We are reasonably early in the investigation stage … I am confident that we can fill that gap.’’
BusinessNZ Energy Council executive director John Carnegie said the Government decision was a ‘‘blight’’ on the energy industry. Investment would probably be pulled immediately, he said.
Green Party MP Chloe Swarbrick said the announcement intended to ‘‘end investment in climate change’’.
Shaw said it was a ‘‘massive breakthrough’’ moment for both the environment and business. It signalled that the two were no longer mutually exclusive.
‘‘Climate change is an economic issue with environmental consequences, rather than the other way around.’’
Government investment in business ideas to reduce greenhouse gas emissions would encourage and accelerate private sector investment in clean technology, he said.
Investment in renewable energy had overtaken investment in fossil fuels, but finance companies were slow to move, he said. ‘‘If we can start to galvanise that small trend together, with any luck, it’ll snowball.’’
The report recommended that organisations begin reporting the environmental risk their business activities could make.
Such a move would cause a ‘‘significant shift in capital flows’’ and force companies to think about the long term, rather than focusing on achieving quarterly profits, Shaw said.