The country's only oil refinery has unveiled plans for a new low-carbon plant at Marsden Point in Northland.
Refining New Zealand's $40 million plant, which is being built by industrial oil and gases company BOC, will enable the refinery to cut carbon dioxide emissions by more than 50,000 tonnes a year, or six percent of the refinery's total annual emissions.
It will take CO2, which is a by-product of the refining process, and purify it for use across a range of industries, including food and beverage, dairy, horticulture and pulp and paper.
Chief executive, Sjoerd Post said the project will reduce the firm's environmental footprint and create a revenue stream which isn't impacted by refining margins and the exchange rate.
The plant is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2015 and will employ around 50 people in its construction.
