Three protest boats are heading out to sea from Dunedin on Saturday night in an attempt to prevent an oil drilling ship from operating.
The Anadarko ship, Noble Bob Douglas, left New Plymouth for Otago on Friday after abandoning a test well in the Taranaki Basin and will soon start exploration 35 nautical miles off Taiaroa Head.
The Oil Free Otago Flotilla is aiming to confront the Noble Bob Douglas as it arrives and to demand Anadarko stop its drilling operations in New Zealand.
Spokesperson Niamh O'Flynn says the flotilla will occupy the ship's drill spot.
Ms O'Flynn says the aim is to show Anadarko that protesters will be there at every step in the ship's operations, no matter how far off-shore it goes.
National Party Dunedin list MP Michael Woodhouse says it will be bad for the region economically if exploration such as Anadarko's is not supported.
