CAPITAL: Wellington

MONETARY UNIT: Dollar

REFINING CAPACITY: 98,000 b/cd

OIL PRODUCTION: 50,000 b/d

OIL RESERVES: 127 million bbl

GAS RESERVES: 2.45 tcf

The New Zealand High Court upheld a finding by the nation`s antitrust authority that Shell New Zealand Ltd., Mobil Oil New Zealand Ltd., and Caltex New Zealand Ltd. were engaged in price fixing.

The government initiated action against the firms in September 1997, alleging they agreed to remove a discount on gasoline prices at 50 gasoline stations in Auckland, the country`s largest city.

Separately, TransAlta New Zealand Ltd., a unit of TransAlta Corp., Calgary, acquired the Rotokawa geothermal steam field and generating plant in northern New Zealand from Utilicorp United Inc. unit United Networks Ltd. for $52.5 million (New Zealand).

TransAlta also sold its majority interest in a gas pipeline network north of Wellington to Australian Gas Light Co. for $60 million (US). The companies were partners in Southern Cross Energy, which purchased four gas-fired power stations from WMC Ltd. for $230.2 million in 1999. Shell Todd Oil Services Ltd., Cultus Petroleum NL, and Shell (Petroleum Mining) Co. Ltd. estimated that they could produce up to 46 million bbl of oil from the recently discovered Maari oil field off Taranaki.

They said development would cost more than $160 million and be completed in 2002. Oil would come from the Moki and Kapuni zones at about 35,000 b/d initially. Owners were Shell Todd 21%, Cultus 30%, and Shell 49%. A 650-m sidetrack of the Maari 1 wildcat flowed at a rate of 4,400 b/d of 37°-gravity oil and 1.3 MMcfd of gas from Miocene Moki through a 18/64-in. choke.

Fletcher Challenge Ltd. said a prospect south of its major Maui natural gas and oil field off the west coast of North Island wasn`t economic to develop.

Maui provided 80% of the nation`s gas, and Fletcher owned 68.7% of it. The other partners were Todd Petroleum Mining Co. and Shell (Petroleum) Mining Co.

Conoco Inc. had a $19 million dry hole in a deepwater wildcat.

The hole was the first exploratory well in New Zealand`s Northland basin, about 90 miles northwest of Auckland. It was in 4,800 ft of water.

Conoco had a 57% stake in a 12-million-acre exploration block. Indonesia Petroleum Ltd. held most of the rest.

Meawhile, Orion New Zealand Ltd., the nation`s second largest electricity distributor and a gas wholesaler, was planning to develop a gas discovery on the east coast of North Island.

Orion and its partner Westech Energy said they expected Kauhauroa field to hold hundreds of billions of cubic feet of gas. More drilling was planned.

The onshore gas field near the township of Wairoa was the first commercial find outside New Zealand`s Taranaki province, which produces all New Zealand`s oil and gas.

Westech was planning a $60 million, 100-km pipeline to link the field with Natural Gas Corp.`s pipeline network on North Island.

The line would run from Frasertown to Napier-Hastings. Completion was due in mid-2000. Most of the gas would be used for power generation.