Clean and Green? by @Thorvald (El Thorvaldo)

A Side 7 exclusive! The Marsden Point Oil Refinery was New Zealand's sole petroleum refining plant, built between 1962–4 and further expanded in 1973 and 1981. A power station, Marsden B, was built nearby, but the 70s oil shocks bumped its operating costs beyond expectations and it was mothballed in 1978 without commission, lying derelict for decades before finally being dismantled and sold to India in 2012. Ironically, New Zealand imported its crude, with much of the plant's production being sold to Australia. Refining NZ, the private consortium that took over the facility during the privatization sweep of the 1980s, announced in 2020 it intended to switch to refined fuel imports, and the facility was closed down in 2022.

Whangarei locals liked to note how Marsden Point stood in stark contrast to the country's "Clean and Green" tourism campaign.

Original photo taken May 2014.