Geothermal water could be a mineral bonanza

A Te Arawa kaumatua has been stunned to find out a study is being undertaken to decide who owns the valuable minerals found in the nation's geothermal resources.

Dr Toby Curtis said he believed the resource was owned by Maori, who would share it with the community.

University of Waikato law professor Barry Barton announced this week he had received a $69,000 grant to study the ownership of rights to minerals found in geothermal fluids.

It is part of a wider two-year study by GNS Science and the University of Auckland called "From Waste to Wealth: Commercial Recovery of Products from Geothermal Fluids".

The study will look to develop practical ways to extract high-value minerals from geothermal fluids.

Geothermal water and steam produced for electricity generation and heating contains dissolved minerals and gas, such as lithium, silver and gold, which may have commercial value.

Professor Barton said one question in unlocking that value was ownership.

He said the law on the matter was not clear and various claims could be made to the minerals under different legislation and different rules of law.

Professor Barton will examine the different possibilities under the current law and would consider law reform in order to provide clarification.

"New ways of looking at our resources may improve the efficiency of our use of them and improve the environmental outcomes,"he said.

"There is an interesting but complex legal question at the heart of the matter."

Rotorua Mayor Steve Chadwick said she did not see the issue having any impact on her plans for greater use of geothermal energy in home heating, or for her aspirations to boost Rotorua's reputation as an international spa city. "We're certainly not going to stop the momentum we have for better utilisation of our geothermal resource as this research project and any subsequent legal processes and legislation may take many, many years yet.

"I certainly don't have any immediate concerns.

"In the past, issues regarding ownership of lake beds and forest land have been successfully sorted out and I'm sure the same could be achieved on this issue when and if it arises."

Dr Curtis said it was the first he had heard of the study and would be bringing it up at his next meeting with Minister of Energy and Resources Simon Bridges.

However, Dr Curtis said from his perspective there was no question the geothermal resource was owned by Maori.

"As far as we are concerned, we own the geothermal. But, we would like to see everyone benefit from this resource.

"But, it's not worth anything unless we can extract something from it.

"At the end of the day, it's not about who owns it, it's who can extract value from it so we can all benefit."

GNS Science project spokesman Greg Bignall said one of the areas with great potential was the extraction of lithium from thermal waters, which has application for use in batteries

"Lithium is also used in the manufacture of specialist glass products and as a light-weight alloy in manufacturing," he said.