Most natural gas in New Zealand is bought and sold via bilateral contracts, the details of which are not publicly available. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) publishes quarterly energy pricing data, which includes natural gas.

A small amount of gas (around 4% in 2020) is traded on emsTradepoint, so more detailed pricing information is available, although these prices are not reflective of the market as a whole.

These charts show quarterly information on all natural gas produced in New Zealand, which is predominantly purchased via bilaterial contracts.

Both the pricing data and supply data are publicly available on MBIE’s website.

Tracking price fluctuations

Average quarterly gas prices

This chart shows the average quarterly price of gas over time. For example in June 2010, the industrial price of gas was $8.08/GJ and the wholesale price of gas was $6.40/GJ.  

Quarterly gas supply 

This chart shows how much gas is supplied in a quarter.  

emsTradepoint monthly gas prices

This chart shows average prices for gas and carbon traded via emsTradepoint each month. Approximately 4% of gas produced is traded through emsTradepoint.