http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3610285a1864,00.htmlIn the hunt to find more natural gas, time is running out.
It's running out not only for the exploration companies hoping to find another Maui-sized field but also for the main electricity generators faced with a decision about whether to import liquefied natural gas.
And it may also be running out for leading electricity and gas consumers staring down the barrel of much higher prices in a post-Maui world.
Assuming there are no big gas finds in the next two to three years, the shortfall will start to bite from as early as 2010. At present, gas provides 24 per cent of New Zealand's primary energy, about half of which is used to generate electricity.
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