Wellington, Dec 16 NZPA - The Government is working on a tax incentive regime to encourage the production of sustainable biofuels in New Zealand, Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee told Parliament today.

Wellington, Dec 15 NZPA - New Zealand Oil & Gas Ltd (NZOG) is welcoming the opening up of new oil exploration areas but says it has some areas worth looking at in its existing permits.

Wellington, Dec 15 NZPA - The New Zealand dollar opened the week under the US55 cent mark this morning as money markets headed into the last full week of trading before Christmas.

By Maggie Tait of NZPA Wellington, Dec 12 NZPA - A local biofuel producer says his New Zealand operation will fold and the local industry will die because of the Government's decision to scrap biofuel obligations.

Wellington, Dec 11 NZPA - The Government's planned law change on biofuels will slow the nation's progress toward self-sufficiency in transport fuels and increase the Kyoto debt the nation faces for greenhouse gas emissions, an industry lobbyist says.

Wellington, Dec 11 NZPA - A law obliging oil companies to sell a proportion of biofuel will be repealed next week, Energy Minister Gerry Brownlee said today.

Wellington, Dec 10 NZPA - The Government is seeking bidders for new petroleum exploration permits across two large offshore areas, the Raukumara (East Cape) and Northland basins.

Wellington, Dec 8 NZPA - The KEA Group wants to look for oil around the Kaipara Harbour, on Northland's west coast.

Wellington, Dec 8 NZPA - Nelson-based oil explorer Green Gate Ltd is abandoning some offshore parts of its prospects after a strategic review in the wake of collapsing oil prices and "disordered" equity markets.

Wellington, Nov 21 NZPA - The New Zealand sharemarket was down sharply in early trading, after equities plunged in the United States as the price of oil fell and worries about the prospects for an automakers' bailout increased.