No, you can still connect to both. Gas connections are not banned. In 2021, the Climate Change Commission recommended Government consider a date to end new connections. Neither the Government at that time, nor the current Government, has acted on this advice.

Around 600,000 Kiwi households use LPG and natural gas energy every day for cooking, hot water and heating.

Natural gas alone currently powers over 19,000 businesses and industrial users such as restaurants, hotels, hospitals and steel makers. Natural gas is also essential for the generation of electricity to supplement New Zealand’s renewable electricity generation.

There is no ban on gas connections or delivering gas and LPG to New Zealand homes and businesses and we expect natural gas and LPG will continue to be delivered to connected consumers until replaced by new net zero and low carbon renewable gases, likely to be by 2050.

Moving to renewable energy is likely to increase the cost of all types of energy so renewable gases are likely to be more expensive than today’s gas. However, there will be a competitive market across all sources of energy and consumers will be able to choose the energy which best suits their needs and budget.

If you currently own or are considering buying an appliance that uses natural gas or LPG, you can have confidence that you’ll be able to use it for its expected lifetime (typically up to 15 years).

Blending gases will be an important part of our journey as we scale up to low and net zero carbon gas energy. Most modern gas appliances are already able to run on a blend of natural gas or LPG and the renewable alternatives currently being developed – before running on 100 percent renewable gases when the supply is sufficient.

No worries there. For now, you can keep using your gas BBQ and buying LPG bottles. In the future we expect you’ll be able to use renewable LPG instead of LPG to fuel the barbie and help us bring about a net zero carbon Aotearoa.

Internationally the renewable LPG industry is well-established, producing over 460,000 tonnes globally each year and moving it around Europe.

New Zealand could likely make and import easily enough renewable LPG to cover our current LPG use.

Future gas blending trials are already underway with the goal of beginning to blend renewable gas with the natural gas in our pipes during 2024.

The gas industry expects that natural gas and LPG will continue to be available to consumers as the blends increase towards 100 percent renewable gases by 2050.

Just like today’s gas, these new gases will be subject to rigorous safety protocols and standards before they are available.

Currently, direct gas energy use by Kiwi homes produces less than 1 percent of New Zealand’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

The more we can introduce renewable gas, the more these emissions will fall.

Natural gas and LPG are important parts of New Zealand’s current energy mix. In the future, we would like to see renewable gases as part of that mix. By promoting their uptake we help to make this a reality.

Future Sure’s goal is to accelerate the transition to renewable gases by increasing awareness of them. Future Sure partner companies are committed to a net zero carbon future and while individual company strategies may pursue different pathways to reduce their carbon emissions, they are united in seeing renewable gases as part of the solution.