(1)  The Minister may, at any time, make available to another Minister to a Minister of State of the Commonwealth or of another State –

(a) any information contained in a document to which this section applies that has been furnished to the Minister; and

(b) any cores or cuttings from, or samples of, the sea-bed or subsoil in a block, or samples of petroleum recovered in a block, that have been furnished to the Minister.

(1A)  The Minister or another Minister may, at any time after the grant or renewal, or refusal to grant or renew, a permit, lease, licence, pipeline licence, access authority, or special prospecting authority –

(a) make publicly known; or

(b) on request by a person and, if the Minister or the other Minister so requires, on payment of a fee of $15 per day, make available to that person –

any information contained in, or accompanying, the application for the grant or renewal, as the case may be, but not including –

(c) information of a kind referred to in subsection (2) or (5A) ; or

(d) particulars of –

(i) the technical qualifications of the applicant and of the employees of the applicant; or

(ii) the technical advice available to the applicant; or

(iii) the financial resources available to the applicant.

(2)  The Minister or another Minister may, at any time after the relevant day –

(a) make publicly known; or

(b) on request by a person and, if the Minister or the other Minister so requires, on payment of a fee of $15 per day, make available to that person –

any information contained in a document to which this section applies that has been furnished to the Minister or has been made available to the other Minister under subsection (1) , being information that relates to the sea-bed or subsoil, or to petroleum, in a block, but not including any matter contained in a document to which this section applies that, in the opinion of the Minister or the other Minister, is a conclusion drawn, in whole or in part, from, or an opinion based, in whole or in part, on, any such information.

(3)  The Minister or another Minister may, at any time after the relevant day –

(a) make publicly known any particulars of; or

(b) on request by a person and, if the Minister or the other Minister so requires, on payment of a fee of $15 per day, permit that person to inspect –

any cores or cuttings from, or samples of, the sea-bed or subsoil in a block, or samples of petroleum recovered in a block, that have been furnished to the Minister or have been made available to the other Minister under subsection (1) .

(4)  For the purposes of subsections (2) and (3) –

(a) where –

(i) a permit or lease is in force in respect of the block; and

(ii) the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister during the period which any of the following were in force in respect of the block:

(A) the permit or lease;

(B) in a case where a lease is in force in respect of the block – the permit that ceased to be in force in respect of the block by virtue of section 37B (7) on the day on which the lease came into force –

the relevant day is the day on which the period of 2 years that commenced on the day on which the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister expires; and

(b) where –

(i) a licence is in force in respect of the block; and

(ii) the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister during the period during which any of the following were in force in respect of the block:

(A) the licence;

(B) the permit or lease that ceased to be in force in respect of the block by virtue of section 43 (5) on the day on which the licence came into force –

the relevant day is the day on which the period of 12 months that commenced on the day on which the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister expires; and

(c) where the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister during a period during which a permit, lease, or licence was in force in respect of the block and –

(i) the permit, lease, or licence is surrendered, cancelled, or determined as to the block; or

(ii) the permit, lease, or licence expires but is not renewed in respect of the block –

the relevant day is the day on which the permit, lease, or licence is so surrendered, cancelled, or determined, or expires, as the case may be, whether another permit, lease, or licence is subsequently in force in respect of the block or not; and

(d) where the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister during a period during which a permit, lease, or licence was not in force in respect of the block, the relevant day is such day as the Minister determines, being a day earlier than the day on which the period of 2 years that commenced on the day on which the document, core, cutting, or sample was furnished to the Minister expires.

(5)  Where –

(a) a document, core, cutting, or sample referred to in subsection (1) was furnished to the Minister –

(i) during or in respect of a period during which a permit, lease, or licence was in force in respect of the block; or

(ii) during or in respect of a period during which a special prospecting authority or access authority was in force in respect of the block but during which a permit, lease, or licence was not in force in respect of the block; and

(b) the permittee, lessee, licensee, or holder of the special prospecting authority or access authority or, if the permit, lease, licence, special prospecting authority, or access authority has ceased to be in force, the person who was the holder of the permit, lease, licence, special prospecting authority, or access authority –

(i) has made publicly known any information contained in the document or has consented in writing to any of that information being made publicly known; or

(ii) has made publicly known any particulars of that core, cutting, or sample or has consented in writing to any particulars of that core, cutting, or sample being made available for inspection –

the Minister, or another Minister to whom that information, core, cutting, or sample has been made available under subsection (1) may, at any time after that information has, or those particulars have, been made publicly known or after that consent has been given –

(c) make publicly known that information or, on request by another person and, if the Minister or the other Minister so requires, on payment of a fee of $15 per day, make that information available to that other person; or

(d) make publicly known those particulars or, on request by any other person and, if the Minister or the other Minister so requires, on payment of a fee of $15 per day, permit that other person to inspect that core, cutting, or sample –

as the case may be.

(5A)  Subject to subsection (5F) , the Minister or another Minister may, at any time after the end of the period of 5 years after a document to which this section applies was furnished to the Minister –

(a) make publicly known; or

(b) on request by a person and, if the Minister or the other Minister so requires, on payment of a fee of $15 per day, make available to that person –

any information contained in the document, being information that relates to the sea-bed or subsoil, or to petroleum, in a block, and that, in the opinion of the Minister or the other Minister, is a conclusion drawn, in whole or in part, from, or an opinion based, in whole or in part, on any information contained in a document to which this section applies that has been furnished to the Minister or has been made available to the other Minister under subsection (1) .

(5B)  Before the Minister or the other Minister makes available or publicly known any information pursuant to subsection (5A) , the Minister or the other Minister, as the case may be, shall –

(a) cause to be published in the Gazette a notice –

(i) stating that the Minister or the other Minister, as the case may be, proposes to make the information available or publicly known; and

(ii) inviting interested persons to give to the Minister or the other Minister, as the case may be, by such day as is specified in the notice, being a day not earlier than 45 days after the publication of the notice, a notice objecting to the whole or any part of the information being made available or publicly known; and

(iii) stating that, if a person does not make an objection in accordance with the invitation, the person will be taken to have consented to the information being made available or publicly known; and

(b) if it is practicable to do so – cause a copy of the notice so published in the Gazette to be served on the person who furnished the document containing the information.

(5C)  There shall be set out in the notice of objection the reasons for making the objection.

(5D)  A person is not entitled to make an objection to information being made available or publicly known except on the grounds that to do so would disclose –

(a) a trade secret; or

(b) any other information the disclosure of which would, or could reasonably be expected to, adversely affect the person in respect of the lawful business, commercial, or financial affairs of the person.

(5E)  Where a person makes an objection to the Minister or the other Minister in accordance with such an invitation, the Minister or the other Minister shall, within 45 days after the receipt of the notice of objection, consider the objection, and may either disallow it, or allow it in whole or in part, and shall cause to be served on the person written notice of the decision on the objection.

(5F)  The Minister or the other Minister shall not make available or make publicly known any information pursuant to subsection (5A) if there is in force an objection made in relation to the information being made available or publicly known but, where such an objection is in force, nothing in this section shall be taken to preclude a further invitation under subsection (5B) being made in relation to the information.

(6)  Except as provided by the preceding subsections or for the purposes of the administration of this Act, the Minister or another Minister to whom any information, core, cutting, or sample has been made available under subsection (1) shall not –

(a) make publicly known, or make available to any person (not being a Minister or a Minister of State of the Commonwealth or of another State), any information contained in a document to which this section applies; or

(b) make publicly known any particulars of, or permit any person (not being a Minister referred to in paragraph (a) ) to inspect any core, cutting, or sample so referred to.

(6A)  This section applies to the following documents:

(a) an application made to the Minister under this Act or a document accompanying such an application;

(b) a report, return, or other document relating to a block that has been furnished to the Minister under this Act.

(7)  In this section, a reference to a core, cutting, or sample includes a reference to a portion of a core, cutting, or sample.

(8)  For the purposes of this section –

(a) cores and cuttings, and well data, logs, sample descriptions, and other documents, relating to the drilling of a well, shall be deemed to have been furnished to the Minister not later than 1 month after the drilling of the well was, in the opinion of the Minister, substantially completed; and

(b) geophysical or geochemical data relating to geophysical or geochemical surveys shall be deemed to have been furnished to the Minister not later than 1 year after the geophysical or geochemical field work was, in the opinion of the Minister, substantially completed.

(9)  In this section, a reference to a Minister of State of another State includes a reference to a Minister of State of the Northern Territory.