Gas market transparency

Improving gas market transparency

The 2025 Review of Electricity Market Performance, completed by Frontier Economics, found that the New Zealand gas market currently only has access to fragmented or incomplete information on gas supply and demand. This is weakening market confidence and contributing to upward pressure on gas and electricity prices.

Better quality information on the gas market can help businesses make informed and efficient planning decisions for the future. This is becoming increasingly important as the gas market is entering a period of significant change driven by declining supply and the potential exit of significant participants.

The Government’s Energy Package aims to address this issue by improving gas market transparency so participants have access to better, more timely information.

2025 consultation on voluntary request

During October and early November 2025, MBIE consulted major gas market participants on additional information that could be provided voluntarily and in some cases publish, to support this goal. We sought feedback on how effective the proposed information would be, and the potential implications and costs for those providing it.

We received 14 submissions from across the gas sector: Bioenergy Association, Clarus, Dominion Salt, Energy Resources Aotearoa, Genesis Energy, Greymouth Petroleum, Inghams, Major Gas Users Group, Mercury, Meridian, Nova Energy, OMV, Todd Energy and Whakatane Mill.

We then consulted further with the gas sector on what additional information would be most useful for users and feasible for producers to provide. This consultation indicated that more information on future supply would be the most valuable.

You can access the consultation paper and submissions below. Some personal identifiers and sensitive information have been removed, and some submissions have not been released, at the submitters’ request.

Submissions on Improving the transparency of the gas market

The Gas (Market Transparency) Amendment Act 2026

On 28 May 2026, the Gas (Market Transparency) Amendment Bill was passed under urgency. The amendment came into force on 6 June 2026. The Gas (Market Transparency) Amendment Act 2026 adds a regulation-making power to the Gas Act 1992, allowing regulations to be made that require industry participants to disclose relevant gas market information to MBIE or to the Gas Industry Company (GIC). It also allows that information to be published where publication would help market participants make informed decisions.

You can read the Minister of Finance, Minister for Energy and Associate Minister for Energy’s joint press release here:

Loans to help businesses transition away from gas(external link) — Beehive.govt.nz

The amendment follows a broader programme of work to improve transparency in the gas market, including bringing forward the release date of gas reserve data earlier in the year and requesting GIC to publish a gas supply and demand study annually.

You can access the amendment to the Act and proactively released regulatory impact statement, Cabinet papers and associated minutes here:

Gas (Market Transparency) Amendment Act 2026(external link) — New Zealand Legislation

Upcoming consultation on the regulations

MBIE plans to begin consulting industry soon on the specific information requirements to be included in the regulations.

Current gas information disclosure requirements

This work to improve gas market transparency builds on earlier work to improve gas information disclosure requirements. You can read more about the current requirements here:

Gas supply and demand information