Minister advises gas consumers to limit usage

Acting Minister of Energy and Resources, Hekia Parata, says gas consumers need to continue limiting their usage while Vector work on a leak on the Maui pipeline in Taranaki.

Ms Parata says Vector is making good progress with the leak, just north of New Plymouth, which is affecting consumers in the North Island.

Vector has spent the last 24 hours safely excavating the site and will continue to work throughout the night. They have identified a crack in the seam in a section of the pipeline and expect to have a clearer idea in the morning on what repairs are needed and how long they will take.

"This is the first major problem with the Maui pipeline in its 30 years of operation. It has been a very reliable piece of infrastructure."

"The Government has been reassured by Vector that they are working systematically, methodically and safely to assess and repair the situation as quickly as possible. We are very keen that they ensure safety is paramount at the site, and that no further complications are caused,'' says Ms Parata.

There is a band system in place which categorises gas consumers based on their usage, with a special band (band 5) for essential services.

Gas supply was restored to essential services earlier today including hospitals and rest homes, and a number of dairy factories and bakeries. However, usage still needs to be restricted until the leak is fixed in order to maintain capacity.

"I just want to reiterate that those users who are able to use gas should conserve their usage as much as possible and use electricity if that is available. That way we will be able to continue supplying gas to those essential services, such as hospitals,'' says Ms Parata.

"The next area of concern is the environment and ensuring there is no damage to it, and thirdly the impact on the economy."

Ms Parata says Transpower has advised there is sufficient electricity to cover the gas outage.

The gas industry and its regulator, the Gas Industry Company, have a plan for dealing with a critical gas outage. This is set out in the Gas Governance (Critical Contingency Management) Regulations 2008.

Under this plan the Gas Industry Company appoints a Critical Contingency Operator (CCO) who has the responsibility for managing the available gas supply by administering the critical contingency protocols.

The CCO operates independently and this role is currently held by Vector.