News & blog hub

Auto manufacturer Suzuki plans to build four biogas refineries in India, which will begin operating in 2025. The biogas plants will turn cattle manure into biomethane, and that methane will be used to power vehicles that are currently fuelled by compressed natural gas.

Ireland’s first ever direct-to-grid injection of biomethane into the Northern Ireland gas grid at Dungannon stands as a ground-breaking milestone for the decarbonisation of energy. 

Ara Ake Board appoints Clarus CE, Paul Goodeve. Paul Goodeve, a Chartered Accountant, Barrister, Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand, and a member of the Institute of Directors, is currently CEO of Clarus (formally Firstgas Group). He has an extensive background in people leadership, expertise in regulated and non-regulated transmission and distribution energy infrastructure, and leadership in renewable energy developments.

Firstgas Group announced today that it is changing its name to Clarus, meaning clear and bright. Paul Goodeve, Clarus CE (formally Firstgas Group) said, “The change to Clarus marks a new and exciting phase for our group of companies, as we look to the future of energy.

A gas blending trial in Germany is on track to reach a 30% hydrogen injection rate, cutting carbon emissions for 30 local homeowners. The blended gas is being delivered to an area in a town of standalone family homes, known as the Oehringen ‘hydrogen island’.

Renewable green hydrogen is on track to be less expensive than fossil fuel generated hydrogen by 2030, according to a new Bloomberg report. This is great news for decarbonising the economy both globally and here in New Zealand.

Renewable green hydrogen with zero emissions is set to change the way we use gas.

As we head towards decarbonising our energy supply, New Zealand is investing heavily in generating more renewable energy. Luckily, here in Aotearoa we have the potential to produce as much energy as we consume.

Clarus are the energy experts. As a leader in New Zealand’s energy sector, Clarus has the future of gas in our sights while at the same time making sure our customers are delivered natural gas and LPG safely and reliably, right now.

New Zealand has set a target of net zero emissions by 2050 – but what will that future look like?

First Renewables (a Firstgas Group company) and Ecogas recently announced the next phase of their partnership that will realise the first large-scale renewable gas to pipeline project in New Zealand.

As part of Firstgas’ ongoing work to reduce our carbon emissions, we’re looking at everything we can do to eliminate, and where that’s currently not possible, to minimise our emissions. We have several initiatives underway that will reduce our emissions intensity over the next 2-3 years which will make significant inroads to reducing our carbon footprint. One of these initiatives is the Gas Transmission team’s acquisition of a ZEVAC Compressor in early 2023.

Severe weather events, including the devastation of Cyclone Gabrielle, saw the Firstlight Network team (formerly Eastland Network) work tirelessly throughout the summer of 2023. At the same time, the Network still had its planned programme of works to deliver, as they continued to maintain and improve energy resilience for their customers and communities throughout Tairāwhiti and Wairoa.

Once again, from the renewable gas space, we have a first-person account from James Irvine, GM of Future Fuels at Firstgas Group. James was fortunate to join the GasNZ & Bioenergy Australia tour of renewable gas projects, travelling across 5 Australian states in 5 days. He shares some of his insights about the projects he visited that spanned a variety of renewable technologies, scale and businesses.

As we’re seeing more frequently these days, climate change affects us all. Which makes it even more vital that we act now to transition to renewable energy sources.

Liquified petroleum gas, or LPG, is used in thousands of homes and businesses across New Zealand and particularly in the South Island. Many homes use 45kg LPG bottles to fuel their gas fires and hot water cylinders – providing instant heat all year round- as well as 9kg bottles to fuel the barbie.