Statistics New Zealand (SNZ) yesterday said gas production increased 0.1% to 163.47 petajoules in the year ended June 30, 2006, compared with the previous 12-month period.

SNZ said annual electricity generation continued to increase as it had done since June 2000, reaching a record of 39,650 gigawatt hours, up 0.4% of the previous 12-month period.

Gas and coal-fired generation – in Taranaki, Auckland and Waikato – rose 28.5%, or 3831GWh, to 17,269GWh, while hydro and wind electricity generation dropped by 3675GWh to only 22,377GWh.

SNZ said bad weather over much of the country during the quarter to June 30 contributed to the record electricity demand.

Gas production peaked in 2001-02 at 257.99PJ and has been falling ever since, largely because the downward Maui reserves re-determination first decreased and then ended, Methanex New Zealand’s entitlement to Maui gas under the original supply contract.

Methanex NZ mothballed its twin-train 70PJ per annum Motunui methanol complex in late 2004 and now only operates the smaller (20PJ) Waitara Valley plant intermittently on non-Maui gas or on market-priced ROFR (right of first refusal) Maui gas.

In April, the Maui partners – Shell New Zealand, Todd Energy and Austrian firm OMV – offered more than 200PJ of ROFR gas into the market.

Then last month, Methanex NZ restarted its valley plant – on what is believed to be on-sold ROFR gas from Contact Energy and/or Vector subsidiary NGC – and plans to run the 520,000 tonne facility at full capacity until at least the end of the year.

SNZ also said continuing high global oil prices, and a depreciating New Zealand dollar, meant petrol prices rose 32.2% between June 2005 and June 2006. Other fuels, mainly diesel, climbed 45.8% during the same period.