The real oil on mineral ownership

So you’re the next Jed Clampett and have just struck oil in your backyard? Think again. You don’t own it. All petroleum, gold and silver in its natural state in New Zealand is Crown-owned, even if it’s under your quarter-acre dream. Sounds clear – unfair, maybe, but clear? Think again. Other minerals, including coal, may be owned by the Crown, or you if you’re the landowner, or some other person, or there may be no clear owner at all. Blame an uncertain system of ownership handed down from English law. To make things worse, access agreements often further complicate ownership, and there is no complete register of mineral ownership and access rights. Would you find it hard to buy a house or invest in land if there was no reliable land title register? That is what it can be like for mineral explorers.