Open Market competitive process

Applicants will be able to apply under the open market competitive process from 25 September 2025.

Petroleum prospecting permits (PPP)

The default for a PPP is an exclusive permit with a subsequent right to apply for a petroleum exploration permit (PEP). 

This type of permit allows the PPP holder to apply for an exclusive exploration permit for the same land area before the prospecting permit expires.

Applications for these PPPs will initiate an open market competitive process.

Speculative prospectors

Alternatively, an applicant may seek a prospecting permit with speculative status, allowing them to investigate an area to gather information that is on-sold to others. Speculative prospector permits are always granted on a non-exclusive basis and provide no subsequent right to apply for a PEP. 

Applications for these speculative prospecting permits do not initiate an open market competitive process.

Guidance about petroleum prospecting permits will be available here shortly.

Petroleum exploration permits (PEP)

Applications for new petroleum exploration permits will initiate an open market competitive process.

Subsequent right to apply for a petroleum exploration permit

If you were previously granted a PPP with subsequent rights, you have an exclusive right to apply for the subsequent PEP. 

This kind of application for a PEP does not initiate an open market competitive process. This is because the OMA competitive process was initiated under the original application for a PPP.

Guidance about petroleum exploration permits and the open market competitive process will be available here shortly. 

The process

Step 1: Application submission

You will be able to submit an application for a PPP or a PEP through our online permitting system, or by email or post using a dedicated form, which will be available here on 25 September 2025.

Applications received by postal mail will take longer to process. 

When the application is received by us, it is recorded, and the applicant is notified of receipt. 

Step 2: Completeness check and acceptance

We will check your application to ensure:

• the application fee has been paid
• all information as required in the Petroleum Regulations has been provided
• the area applied for has one, unbroken (contiguous) area
• an acceptable map has been included
• a proposed work programme has been included.

Regulation 17 & 18 of the Crown Minerals (Petroleum) Regulations 2007 — New Zealand Legislation

If your application is complete, you will be sent an acceptance letter, and the application will progress to evaluation.

If your application is incomplete your application will not be accepted, and it will be returned to you. 

Step 3: Public notification

The first application accepted for a (non-speculative) prospecting or exploration permit over a proposed permit area is considered the “Initial application”.

Initial applications that meet the acceptance criteria will be publicly notified on our website and will trigger a 3-month period of competition.

The notification will include:

• the applicant’s name
• a map of the proposed permit area
• the proposed work programme
• open and close dates of the competition period.

Notification that an Initial application has been accepted will also be made on LinkedIn and our website. 

Competing applications can be submitted for a permit over the same permit area as the Initial application during this 3-month period. Competing applications will also be publicly notified on our website with the same information as the Initial application.

Competing applications can only be made within the 3-month Period of Competition advertised on our website. 

If an application is for part of the land subject to an Initial application (the competed area), and also for part of an area that has not yet been applied for, that application will be the Competing application in respect of the part that is the competed area and the Initial application in relation to the area that had not previously been applied for. This will trigger a new 3-month competitive process over the land subject to the new Initial application. 

Competing applications that are submitted within the 3-month period but are not acceptable (for example, because they had missing information) will not be able to compete and will be returned to the applicant.

Step 4: Application evaluation

The Initial application and all Competing applications will be prioritised for decision by permit type when the 3-month period of competition ends on the following basis:

• Applications for extensions of land (EOL) from the holders of existing mining permits will be evaluated and decided first, ahead of all other application types
• Applications for an EOL from the holders of existing exploration permits will be decided second
• Applications for PEPs will be decided next, ahead of PPP applications
• PPP applications will be decided last. Although allocated under an open market competitive process, PPPs will be evaluated according to the date they are received by us. The application which is received first will be evaluated first, and later applications will be evaluated in the order they are received. If two or more applications for overlapping land are received on the same day, the application which we initially assesses “best meets the purpose of the Act” will be evaluated first.

To ensure fairness, because their application has been accessible to Competing applicants, at the end of the 3-month period of competition an Initial applicant for a PEP will be given an opportunity to provide an improved work programme before any of the applications are evaluated. (This is not the case for Initial applicants for PPPs).

Step 5: Consultation with iwi and hapū

When considering any applications for petroleum permits, we will always consult iwi and hapū who might be affected because the proposed permit area includes some or all of their area of land.

Consultation will be undertaken in accordance with the principles and procedures set out in the Petroleum Programme.

Petroleum Programme [PDF 2.4MB]

Step 6: Final decisions

Following the 3-month period of competition, we will complete its evaluation of all applications in the competition round (in the order of priority described in step 4) and a top ranked application will be determined.  

However, this assessment may not always result in a decision to grant a permit. The Minister can decline to grant a permit application at any stage.

When a decision has been made to approve an application, the successful applicant will receive a letter advising the permit has been granted. Information about the granted permit will also be publicly notified on our website and notification of a granted permit will be published on LinkedIn. 

If you have any questions about applying for a petroleum permit, please contact nzpam@mbie.govt.nz.