Energy Minister Simeon Brown last week announced he was appointing both John Carnegie and Vijay Goel as EECA board members for three-year terms beginning in early January.

Carnegie is the Chief Executive of Energy Resources Aotearoa, a role he took up in December 2019. Before 2021 the organisation was named the Petroleum Exploration and Production Association of New Zealand (PEPANZ).

Energy Resources Aotearoa represents energy intensive businesses, from explorers and producers to distributors, sellers, and users of energy resources like oil, LPG, natural gas, refined products, and hydrogen.

Carnegie was previously the Executive Director of the BusinessNZ Energy Council and has nearly three decades experience in public policy and energy markets.

Recently Energy Resources Aotearoa, with Carnegie at its helm, made headlines for lobbying the government to guarantee demand for gas from offshore fossil fuel fields.

The Green Party condemned Carnegie’s appointment. “The appointment of a fossil fuel lobbyist to this board is like putting the fox in charge of the henhouse,” said Green Party Spokesperson for Energy, Scott Willis, in a media release.

“This shows how entrenched climate denial is at the heart of this Government, and completely flies in the face of the Authority’s mandate to promote energy efficiency. It’s also an insult to the legacy of [former Green Party co-leader] Jeanette Fitzsimons, the architect of EECA.”

Willis said the appointment is the latest in a series of “wildly inappropriate” political appointments by the government. “In this case, it’s one which undermines the necessary transition we so desperately need and instead turns up the temperature on the already raging climate crisis.

“We can build a more sustainable and affordable energy network that puts the interests of people and planet before the profits of the fossil fuel industry. But we will fail to do that by pandering to industry lobbyists.”

However Energy Minister Simeon Brown said both the new board members brought skills that would be helpful for EECA.

“With backgrounds in the energy sector, governance, and business, these two appointments will add helpful skills and perspectives to the EECA Board and ensure that the agency drives value for money for every dollar spent. I would like to thank former member Albert Brantley and outgoing member Karen Sherry QSM for their service to the EECA Board,” Brown said.

“As Minister for Energy, my goal is to ensure that New Zealand has a reliable energy mix that meets the needs of households and businesses, and is available at internationally competitive prices.

“Ensuring that the energy New Zealand produces is used efficiently and that there are good conservation measures in place is the other side of this important equation."

Vijay Goel is a chartered accountant and is currently the Chair of the Bank of Baroda (New Zealand) Limited.

Carbon News has contacted John Carnegie for comment.