Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

OFFSHORE PETROLEUM AND GREENHOUSE GAS STORAGE ACT 2006 - SECT 592

Scope

  (1)   This section applies to:

  (a)   a greenhouse gas assessment permit; or

  (b)   a greenhouse gas holding lease; or

  (c)   a greenhouse gas injection licence, if no operations for the injection of a greenhouse gas substance into an identified greenhouse gas storage formation have been carried on under the licence.

Direction to registered holder

  (2)   The responsible Commonwealth Minister may, by written notice given to a person referred to in subsection   (2A), direct the person to do any or all of the following things on or before the applicable date:

  (a)   to:

  (i)   remove, or cause to be removed, from the title area all property brought into that area by any person engaged or concerned in the operations authorised by the permit, lease or licence; or

  (ii)   make arrangements that are satisfactory to the responsible Commonwealth Minister in relation to that property;

  (b)   to plug or close off, to the satisfaction of the responsible Commonwealth Minister, all wells made in the title area by any person engaged or concerned in those operations;

  (c)   to provide, to the satisfaction of the responsible Commonwealth Minister, for the conservation and protection of the natural resources in the title area;

  (d)   to make good, to the satisfaction of the responsible Commonwealth Minister, any damage to the seabed or subsoil in the title area caused by any person engaged or concerned in those operations;

so long as the direction is given for a purpose that relates to:

  (e)   resource management; or

  (f)   resource security; or

  (g)   decommissioning.

Note 1:   For applicable date and title area , see subsection   (6).

Note 2:   For variation and revocation, see subsection   33(3) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 .

  (2A)   The persons are:

  (a)   the registered holder of the permit, lease or licence; or

  (b)   a related body corporate of the registered holder of the permit, lease or licence; or

  (c)   any former registered holder of the permit, lease or licence; or

  (d)   a person who was a related body corporate of any former registered holder of the permit, lease or licence at the time the permit, lease or licence was in force; or

  (e)   a person to whom a determination under subsection   (2B) applies.

  (2B)   The responsible Commonwealth Minister may make a written determination that this subsection applies to a person if, having regard to the following matters, the responsible Commonwealth Minister is satisfied on reasonable grounds that it is appropriate to do so:

  (a)   whether the person is capable of significantly benefiting financially, or has significantly benefited financially, from the operations authorised by the permit, lease or licence;

  (b)   whether the person is, or has been at any time, in a position to influence the way in which, or the extent to which, a person is complying, or has complied, with the person's obligations under this Act;

  (c)   whether the person acts or acted jointly with the registered holder, or a former holder, of the permit, lease or licence in relation to the operations authorised by the permit, lease or licence.

  (2C)   A determination under subsection   (2B) is not a legislative instrument.

  (2D)   If a direction is given under subsection   (2) to a person referred to in paragraph   (2A)(b), (c), (d) or (e), the responsible Commonwealth Minister must give a copy of the direction to the registered holder of the permit, lease or licence as soon as practicable after the direction is given.

  (3)   Paragraph   (2)(c) has effect subject to:

  (a)   Chapter   3; and

  (b)   this Chapter; and

  (c)   the regulations.

  (4)   In attaining a state of satisfaction for the purposes of paragraph   (2)(b), the responsible Commonwealth Minister must have regard to the principle that plugging or closing off wells should be carried out in a way that minimises damage to the petroleum - bearing qualities of geological formations.

Offence

  (5)   A person commits an offence if:

  (a)   the person is subject to a direction under subsection   (2); and

  (b)   the person omits to do an act; and

  (c)   the omission breaches the direction.

Penalty:   100 penalty units.

  (5A)   An offence against subsection   (5) is an offence of strict liability.

Note:   For strict liability, see section   6.1 of the Criminal Code .

Applicable date and title area

  (6)   For the purposes of this section, the table has effect:

 

Applicable date and title area
Item	In the case of...	the applicable date is...	and the title area is...
1	a greenhouse gas assessment permit	the expiry date of the permit	the permit area.
2	a greenhouse gas holding lease (other than a special greenhouse gas holding lease)	the expiry date of the lease	the lease area.
3	a special greenhouse gas holding lease	the date determined, in writing, by the responsible Commonwealth Minister	the lease area.
4	a greenhouse gas injection licence	the first date on which the licence can be terminated under this Act	the licence area.

  (7)   A notice under subsection   (2) need not identify the applicable date as a particular calendar date.

Inconsistency

  (8)   If a direction under this section is inconsistent with a direction under section   591B, the direction under this section has no effect to the extent of the inconsistency.