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Energy Bill


Energy Bill
Part 4 — Provisions relating to oil and gas

66

 

75      

Third party access to oil processing facilities

(1)   

A person (“the applicant”) who seeks a right to have petroleum processed by

an oil processing facility must, before making an application to the Secretary of

State under subsection (5), apply to the owner of the facility for the right.

(2)   

An application under subsection (1) may be made only in respect of an oil

5

processing facility which is situated in—

(a)   

Great Britain,

(b)   

the territorial sea adjacent to Great Britain, or

(c)   

the sea in any area designated under section 1(7) of the Continental

Shelf Act 1964 (c. 29).

10

(3)   

An application under subsection (1) is to be made by notice in writing

specifying the nature of the right which is being sought.

(4)   

The notice must, in particular, specify—

(a)   

the period during which the petroleum is to be processed by the facility,

(b)   

the kind of petroleum to be processed, and

15

(c)   

the quantities of petroleum to be processed.

(5)   

If the owner and the applicant do not reach agreement on the application, the

applicant may apply to the Secretary of State for directions which would secure

to the applicant the right specified in the notice.

(6)   

The Secretary of State may not consider an application under subsection (5)

20

unless satisfied that the parties have had a reasonable time in which to reach

agreement.

(7)   

When considering an application under subsection (5) the Secretary of State

must—

(a)   

decide whether the application is to be adjourned to enable further

25

negotiations between the parties, considered further or rejected,

(b)   

give notice of that decision to the applicant, and

(c)   

in the case of a decision to consider the application further, give notice

to the persons mentioned in subsection (8) and give them the

opportunity to be heard in relation to the application.

30

(8)   

Those persons are—

(a)   

the owner of the oil processing facility,

(b)   

any person with a right to have petroleum processed at the facility, and

(c)   

the Health and Safety Executive.

(9)   

On an application under subsection (5), the Secretary of State may give

35

directions if satisfied that they will not prejudice—

(a)   

the efficient operation of the oil processing facility,

(b)   

the processing by the facility of the quantities of petroleum which the

owner or an associate of the owner requires or may reasonably be

expected to require to be processed by the facility for the purposes of

40

any business carried on by the owner or associate, or

(c)   

the processing by the facility of the quantities of petroleum which

another person with a right to have petroleum processed by the facility

requires to be processed in the exercise of that right.

 
 

Energy Bill
Part 4 — Provisions relating to oil and gas

67

 

76      

Directions under section 75: supplemental

(1)   

Directions under section 75 may—

(a)   

specify the terms on which the Secretary of State considers that the

owner of the oil processing facility should enter into an agreement with

the applicant for all or any of the purposes mentioned in subsection (2);

5

(b)   

specify the sums, or the method of determining the sums, which the

Secretary of State considers should be paid by the applicant as

consideration for the right to have petroleum processed at the facility;

(c)   

require the owner, if the applicant pays or agrees to pay those sums

within a period specified in the directions, to enter into an agreement

10

with the applicant on the terms specified under paragraph (a).

(2)   

The purposes mentioned in subsection (1)(a) are—

(a)   

securing to the applicant the right to have petroleum, of the kind and in

the quantities specified in the direction, processed at the oil processing

facility;

15

(b)   

securing that the applicant is not prevented or impeded from exercising

that right;

(c)   

regulating the charges which may be made for the processing of

petroleum by virtue of that right;

(d)   

securing to the applicant such ancillary or incidental rights as the

20

Secretary of State considers necessary or expedient, which may include

the right to have a pipeline connected to the facility by the owner.

(3)   

For the purpose of considering an application under section 75(5), the Secretary

of State may by notice require the owner or the applicant to provide such

information relevant to the application as may be specified or described in the

25

notice.

(4)   

The information mentioned in subsection (3) may, in particular, include

financial information relevant to the owner’s or the applicant’s activities with

respect to oil processing operations.

(5)   

The Secretary of State may not disclose to any person any information obtained

30

under subsection (3) unless—

(a)   

the person by or on behalf of whom the information was provided

consents to the disclosure, or

(b)   

the disclosure is required by virtue of an obligation imposed on the

Secretary of State by or under an enactment.

35

(6)   

Compliance with directions under section 75 is enforceable by civil

proceedings by the Secretary of State for an injunction or interdict or for any

other appropriate relief.

(7)   

Civil proceedings under subsection (6) are to be brought—

(a)   

in England and Wales, in the High Court, or

40

(b)   

in Scotland, in the Court of Session.

(8)   

In this section and section 75

“oil processing facility” means any facility which carries out oil processing

operations;

“oil processing operations” means any of the following operations—

45

(a)   

initial blending and such other treatment of petroleum as may

be required to produce stabilised crude oil and other

 
 

Energy Bill
Part 4 — Provisions relating to oil and gas

68

 

hydrocarbon liquids to the point at which a seller could

reasonably make a delivery to a purchaser of such oil and

liquids;

(b)   

receiving stabilised crude oil and other hydrocarbon liquids

piped from an oil processing facility carrying out operations of

5

a kind mentioned in paragraph (a), or storing oil or other

hydrocarbon liquids so received, prior to their conveyance to

another place (whether inside or outside Great Britain);

(c)   

loading stabilised crude oil and other hydrocarbon liquids

piped from a facility carrying out operations of a kind

10

mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b) for conveyance to another

place (whether inside or outside Great Britain);

“owner”, in relation to an oil processing facility, includes a lessee and any

person occupying or controlling the facility;

“petroleum” has the meaning given by section 1 of the Petroleum Act 1998

15

(c. 17) and includes petroleum which has undergone any processing.

77      

Meaning of “associate”

(1)   

For the purposes of section 75(9) a person is an associate of the owner of an oil

processing facility if—

(a)   

either or both of them is a body corporate, and

20

(b)   

one of them controls the other, or both are controlled by the same

person or persons,

   

and subsections (2) to (6) set out the circumstances in which one person (“A”)

controls another (“B”).

(2)   

Where B is a company, A controls B if A possesses or is entitled to acquire—

25

(a)   

one half or more of the issued share capital of B,

(b)   

such rights as would entitle A to exercise one half or more of the votes

exercisable in general meetings of B,

(c)   

such part of the issued share capital of B as would entitle A to one half

or more of the amount distributed if the whole of the income of B were

30

in fact distributed among the shareholders, or

(d)   

such rights as would, in the event of the winding up of B or in any other

circumstances, entitle it to receive one half or more of the assets of B

which would then be available for distribution among the

shareholders.

35

(3)   

Where B is a limited liability partnership, A controls B if A—

(a)   

holds a majority of the voting rights in B,

(b)   

is a member of B and has a right to appoint or remove a majority of

other members, or

(c)   

is a member of B and controls alone, or pursuant to an agreement with

40

other members, a majority of the voting rights in B.

(4)   

In subsection (3)(a) and (c) the references to “voting rights” are to the rights

conferred on members in respect of their interest in a limited liability

partnership to vote on those matters which are to be decided on by a vote of

the members of the limited liability partnership.

45

(5)   

In any case, A controls B if A has the power, directly or indirectly, to secure that

the affairs of B are conducted in accordance with A’s wishes.

 
 

Energy Bill
Part 5 — Miscellaneous

69

 

(6)   

In determining whether, by virtue of subsections (2) to (5), A controls B, A shall

be taken to possess—

(a)   

any rights and powers possessed by a person as nominee for it, and

(b)   

any rights and powers possessed by a body corporate which it controls

(including rights and powers which such a body corporate would be

5

taken to possess by virtue of this paragraph).

Part 5

Miscellaneous

Energy reports

78      

Energy reports

10

(1)   

In section 1 of the Sustainable Energy Act 2003 (c. 30) (annual reports on

progress towards sustainable energy aims)—

(a)   

in subsection (1) omit—

(i)   

“, beginning with 2004,”, and

(ii)   

“in the reporting period”,

15

(b)   

in subsection (1A) omit—

(i)   

paragraphs (a), (b) and (c), and

(ii)   

in paragraphs (ba), (bb) and (d), “during that period”,

(c)   

in subsection (1AA), omit “in the reporting period”,

(d)   

omit subsections (1B) to (3), and

20

(e)   

after subsection (4) insert—

“(4A)   

A report or part of a report published under this section must

specify the period to which it relates.”

(2)   

In section 5 of the Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 (c. 19)

(national microgeneration targets: modification of section 1 of the Sustainable

25

Energy Act 2003)—

(a)   

in subsection (2)—

(i)   

for “(1B)” substitute “(1AA)”,

(ii)   

in the inserted subsection (1BA) omit “during the reporting

period”, and

30

(iii)   

omit “and as if” to the end, and

(b)   

in subsection (3)—

(i)   

in paragraph (a) omit “reporting”,

(ii)   

omit paragraph (c), and

(iii)   

in paragraph (d) for “that section” substitute “section 1 of the

35

Sustainable Energy Act 2003”.

(3)   

In the Energy Act 2004 (c. 20), omit section 172 (annual report on security of

energy supplies).

 
 

 
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