Western Australian Current Acts

PETROLEUM (SUBMERGED LANDS) ACT 1982 - SECT 4

4 .         Terms used

        (1)         In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears —

        access authority means an access authority under Part III;

        adjacent area , in relation to a pipeline or pipeline licence, has the meaning given in section 60K;

        adjacent area , other than in relation to a pipeline or pipeline licence, has the meaning given in section 5;

        application for a primary licence means an application under section 40(1) or (2) or 40A(1) or (2);

        application for a secondary licence means an application under section 40(3) or 40A(3);

        approved means approved by the Minister;

        block means a block constituted as provided by section 17;

        boundary-change permit means a permit granted under section 27A;

        Commonwealth Act means the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 (Commonwealth);

        Commonwealth lease means a petroleum retention lease as defined in the Commonwealth Act section 7;

        Commonwealth licence means a fixed-term petroleum production licence as defined in the Commonwealth Act section 7;

        Commonwealth Minister means the Minister of the Crown in right of the Commonwealth for the time being administering the Commonwealth Act, and includes another Minister for the time being acting for and on behalf of that Minister;

        Commonwealth permit means a petroleum exploration permit as defined in the Commonwealth Act section 7;

        construct includes place and construction has a corresponding meaning;

        corresponding law means an Act of another State or a law in force in a Territory of the Commonwealth giving effect to the agreement between the Commonwealth, the States and the Northern Territory referred to in the preamble to this Act;

        document includes any map, book, record or writing;

        facility has the meaning given in section 4A;

        good oil-field practice means all those things that are generally accepted as good and safe in the carrying on of exploration for petroleum, or in operations for the recovery of petroleum, as the case may be;

        good processing and transport practice means all those things that are generally accepted as good and safe in the processing and storage of petroleum and the preparation of petroleum for transport;

        granted , in relation to a boundary-change permit, a lease under section 38CD or a licence under section 51A, means taken to have been granted;

        graticular section means a section referred to in section 17;

        infrastructure facilities has the meaning given in section 6B;

        infrastructure licence means an infrastructure licence under Part III;

        infrastructure licence area , in relation to an infrastructure licence, means the place in respect of which the infrastructure licence is in force;

        infrastructure licensee means the registered holder of an infrastructure licence;

        inspector means a person appointed under section 125;

        Joint Authority means the Commonwealth-Western Australia Offshore Petroleum Joint Authority established by the Commonwealth Act;

        lease means a retention lease under Part III;

        lease area means the area constituted by the blocks that are the subject of a lease;

        lessee means the registered holder of a lease;

        licence means a production licence for petroleum under Part III;

        licence area means the area constituted by the blocks that are the subject of a licence;

        licensee means the registered holder of a licence;

        location means a block or blocks in respect of which a declaration under section 37 is in force;

        natural resources has the same meaning as in paragraph 4 of Article 77 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea done at Montego Bay on 10 December 1982;

        Note for this definition

                Paragraph 4 of Article 77 is as follows:

                The natural resources referred to in this Part consist of the mineral and other non-living resources of the seabed and subsoil together with living organisms belonging to sedentary species, that is to say, organisms which, at the harvestable stage, either are immobile on or under the seabed or are unable to move except in constant physical contact with the seabed or the subsoil.

        offshore area means the offshore area of Western Australia within the meaning of the Commonwealth Act section 7;

        offshore petroleum operation has the meaning given in section 4A;

        partly cancelled means —

            (a)         in relation to a permit or lease or licence, cancelled as to one or more but not all of the blocks the subject of the permit or lease or licence; and

            (b)         in relation to a pipeline licence, cancelled as to a part of the pipeline the subject of the licence;

        partly determined , in relation to a permit or lease, means determined as to one or more but not all of the blocks the subject of the permit or lease;

        permit means an exploration permit for petroleum under Part III, including a boundary-change permit;

        permit area means the area constituted by the blocks that are the subject of a permit;

        permittee means the registered holder of a permit;

        petroleum means —

            (a)         any naturally occurring hydrocarbon, whether in a gaseous, liquid or solid state; or

            (b)         any naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbons, whether in a gaseous, liquid or solid state; or

            (c)         any naturally occurring mixture of one or more hydrocarbons, whether in a gaseous, liquid or solid state, and one or more of the following, that is to say, hydrogen sulphide, nitrogen, helium and carbon-dioxide,

        and includes any petroleum as defined by paragraph (a), (b) or (c) that has been returned to a natural reservoir in the adjacent area;

        petroleum pool means a naturally occurring discrete accumulation of petroleum;

        pipeline means a pipe or system of pipes in the adjacent area within the meaning of section 60K for conveying petroleum but does not include a pipe or system of pipes —

            (a)         for returning petroleum to a natural reservoir; or

            (b)         for conveying petroleum for use for the purposes of petroleum exploration operations or operations for the recovery of petroleum; or

            (c)         for conveying petroleum that is to be flared or vented; or

            (d)         for conveying petroleum from a well to a terminal station without passing through another terminal station, whether the terminal station to which the petroleum is conveyed is in that adjacent area or not;

        pipeline licence means a licence under Part III to construct and operate a pipeline;

        pipeline licensee means the registered holder of a pipeline licence;

        primary entitlement means —

            (a)         in relation to a permittee, the number of blocks forming part of a location in the permit area in respect of which that permittee may make an application under section 40(1); and

            (b)         in relation to a lessee, the number of blocks in the lease area in respect of which that lessee may make an application under section 40A(1);

        primary licence means a licence granted on an application under section 40(1) or (2) or 40A(1) or (2);

        pumping station means equipment for pumping petroleum or water and includes any structure associated with that equipment;

        register means the register kept in pursuance of Division 5 of Part III;

        registered holder , in relation to a permit, lease, licence, infrastructure licence, pipeline licence, special prospecting authority or access authority, means the person whose name is for the time being shown in the register as being the holder of the permit, lease, licence, infrastructure licence, pipeline licence, special prospecting authority or access authority;

        Registration Fees Act means the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Registration Fees Act 1982 ;

        regulations means regulations made under section 152;

        relinquished area means —

            (a)         in relation to a permit, lease or licence that has expired, the area constituted by the blocks in respect of which the permit, lease or licence was in force but has not been renewed; and

            (b)         in relation to a permit or lease that has been wholly determined or partly determined, the area constituted by the blocks as to which the permit or lease was so determined; and

            (c)         in relation to a permit or licence that has been wholly cancelled or partly cancelled, the area constituted by the blocks as to which the permit or licence was so cancelled; and

            (ca)         in relation to a lease that has been wholly cancelled, the area constituted by the blocks in respect of which the lease was in force; and

            (da)         in relation to an infrastructure licence that has been surrendered, cancelled or terminated, the place that constituted the infrastructure licence area; and

            (d)         in relation to a pipeline licence that is no longer in force, the part of the adjacent area in which the pipeline was constructed; and

            (e)         in relation to a pipeline licence that has been wholly cancelled or partly cancelled, the part of the adjacent area in which the pipeline or the part of the pipeline, as the case may be, was constructed; and

            (f)         in relation to a special prospecting authority or access authority that has been surrendered or cancelled, or has expired, the area constituted by the blocks in respect of which that authority was in force;

        royalty period , in relation to a permit or licence, means —

            (a)         the period from and including the date from which the permit or licence has effect to the end of the month of the year during which that date occurs; and

            (b)         each month thereafter;

        royalty value has the meaning applicable under section 145A(1) or (2);

        scheduled area means the scheduled area for Western Australia described in Schedule 2;

        secondary licence means a licence granted on an application under section 40(3) or 40A(3);

        secondary line means a pipe or system of pipes for any purpose referred to in paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of the definition of pipeline ;

        special prospecting authority means a special prospecting authority under Part III;

        tank station means a tank or system of tanks for holding or storing petroleum and includes any structure associated with that tank or system of tanks;

        terminal station means a pumping station, a tank station or a valve station declared to be a terminal station under section 63 or under the Commonwealth Act or a corresponding law;

        territorial sea means the territorial sea of Australia and includes the territorial sea adjacent to any island forming part of Western Australia;

        valve station means equipment for regulating the flow of petroleum and includes any structure associated with that equipment;

        vessel means a vessel used in navigation, other than air navigation, and includes a barge, lighter or other floating vessel;

        water line means a pipe or system of pipes for conveying water in connection with petroleum exploration operations or operations for the recovery of petroleum;

        well means a hole in the seabed or subsoil made by drilling, boring or any other means in connection with exploration for petroleum or operations for the recovery of petroleum, but does not include a seismic shot hole;

        wholly cancelled , in relation to a permit, lease, licence or pipeline licence, means cancelled as to all the blocks, or as to the whole of the pipeline, the subject of the permit, lease, licence or pipeline licence;

        wholly determined , in relation to a permit or lease, means determined as to all the blocks the subject of the permit or lease.

        (2)         Notes in this Act are provided to assist understanding and do not form part of the Act.

        [Section 4 amended: No. 12 of 1990 s. 160; No. 11 of 1994 s. 8; No. 13 of 2005 s. 34; No. 42 of 2010 s. 65; No. 57 of 2011 s. 4; No. 7 of 2017 s. 26; No. 36 of 2020 s. 335.]