New Survey Shows Increased Support For New Zealand’s Oil And Gas Industry

The public’s view towards New Zealand’s oil and gas industry has markedly improved over the last two years, according to the latest survey on behalf of the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association of New Zealand (PEPANZ)

The UMR survey of 1,177 respondents was conducted in late 2019 and follows a similar survey in December 2017. Some of the key findings include:

- More people now have a favourable view of the industry (21%) compared to unfavourable (20%) with 46% neutral.

- A major decline in people with an unfavourable view of the industry (down from 32% to 20%)

- 65% agree it is better to produce natural gas here in New Zealand rather than import it.

"It’s pleasing to see increasing support with less than a fifth having an unfavourable view," says PEPANZ CEO John Carnegie.

"It shows that sensible New Zealanders recognise the important role oil and natural gas play in our economy and society.

"The majority of respondents agree with the economic benefits of oil and natural gas, and its importance to households and businesses.

"Our educational website Energy Mix, the social media campaign Energy Voices and our publications are all part of this effort and its pleasing to see them having an impact.

"A challenge for us is to keep explaining how our industry is part of the solution in our transition to a lower emissions world. This is especially the case for natural gas which is replacing higher-emitting energy sources around the world.

"Natural gas also enables renewable electricity by providing a crucial and cost-effective back-up. We are world leaders in electricity with 84% coming from renewable sources, but to increase this we’ll need more natural gas."

A full copy of the survey results is available at https://www.pepanz.com/oil-and-gas-new-zealand/public-opinion-on-oil-and-gas/.

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