Community Initiative of the Year
This award recognises a partnership or initiative that delivers meaningful and enduring benefits to communities through genuine collaboration and a commitment to community outcomes.
Sponsored by
First Gas
Pariroa pipeline bypass
finalist
Community Initiative of the Year
New Zealand Energy Excellence Awards 2019
During 2018, a crease was discovered in the Māui gas transmission pipeline beneath farmland in Pariroa, North Taranaki. The defect threatened the reliability and security of gas supply to the entire upper North Island. Instead of using its powers under regulation to cut the pipe and fix the defect, First Gas took a different, more holistic approach - to work collaboratively with stakeholder communities on an option that would cause as little disruption to them as possible. This approach not only secured the gas supply through a successful pipeline bypass project but paved the way for positive future stakeholder - industry engagement.