In New Plymouth the Environment Court this week began hearing appeals by Maori group, Te Ohu o Pohokura, against six resource management consents earlier issued by the Taranaki Regional Council relating to the proposed billion-dollar Pohokura development.

Monday and yesterday saw the Court consider an application by the TRC, supported by Pohokura operator Shell Todd Oil Services, to have the appeals struck out. However, Judge David Sheppard indicated this will not happen and that the appeals will need to go to a substantive hearing.

However, if the hearing is not completed by the end of next week, it will not be able to resume again this year because of the court's workload, The Daily News reports.

Pue, an veteran of protesting energy projects, told Judge Sheppard that Te Ohu o Pohokura was an not an officially incorporated organisation and had a membership of just two - himself and Maori elder Huirangi Waikerepuru.

The TRC submission to the court describes Pue's actions as an abuse of the court process, seeking to achieve some rather ill-defined and inevitably misguided ends, usually without the benefit of any evidence.

The STOS submission described Pue's actions as "a merit-less hope".

Pue has challenged numerous resource consent applications relating to Taranaki energy projects over the past few years and has twice had costs, totalling $NZ54,000, awarded against him for his frivolous and vexatious appeals.

In 2000 the court awarded Aussie explorer Bligh Oil and Minerals (now Horizon Oil) $NZ15,000 in costs after Pue's unsuccessful appeal against the Huinga-1 well in central Taranaki. Last August, the court awarded legal costs of $NZ39,000 against Pue after his failed appeal against a power generation scheme near Inglewood.