(1) In this Act, except in so far as the subject-matter indicates or
requires –
access authority means an access authority granted and in
force under Part III ;
adjacent area means, subject to subsection (2) , so
much of the area the boundary of which is described in Schedule 2 as is part
of the territorial sea of Australia, including the territorial sea adjacent to
any island forming part of Tasmania and, subject to subsection (3) , includes
an area which –
(a) is within the area the boundary of which is described in Schedule 2 ;
(b) is seaward of the coastline of Tasmania at mean low water and landward of
the inner limit of the territorial sea of Australia; and
(c) was, immediately before the commencement of this Act, the subject of an
exploration permit for petroleum subsisting under the Commonwealth Act ;
application for a primary licence means an application under section 39 (1) or
(2) or 39A (1) or (2) ;
application for a secondary licence means an
application under section 39 (3) or 39A (3) ;
the applied provisions means the
provisions (other than the provisions of this Act) which apply within the
adjacent area by virtue of the Coastal and Other Waters (Application of State
Laws) Act 1982 ;
approved means approved by the Minister;
block means a block
constituted as provided by section 16 ;
(b) if the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1967 of the Commonwealth is
repealed and re-enacted, with or without modification, the Act of the
Commonwealth that re-enacts it, as amended from time to time;
the Commonwealth
Minister means the Minister of the Crown in right of the Commonwealth for the
time being administering the Commonwealth Act;
construct includes "place" ;
the Convention means the Convention entitled "Convention on the Continental
Shelf" signed at Geneva on 29th April 1958, being the Convention a copy of
which in the English language is set out in Schedule 1 ;
corresponding law
means an Act of a State other than Tasmania or a law in force in a Territory
of the Commonwealth giving effect to the agreement between the Governments of
the Commonwealth, the States, and the Northern Territory referred to in the
preamble to this Act;
document includes any map, book, record, or writing;
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;
graticular
section means a section referred to in section 16 ;
inspector means a person
appointed and holding office, or deemed to hold office, under section 125 ;
interstate Minister means the Minister of the Crown in right of a State (other
than Tasmania) or of the Northern Territory who is for the time being
authorised under the law of that State or Territory to perform the functions
of a Designated Authority under the Commonwealth Act;
the Joint Authority
means the Commonwealth-Tasmania 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 granted and in force 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;
listed OHS laws has the meaning
given in section 150C ;
location means a block or blocks in respect of
which a declaration under section 36 is in force;
Minister means the Minister
for the time being administering the Mineral Resources Development Act 1995 ;
natural resources has the same meaning as in the Convention;
OHS inspector
means an OHS inspector appointed under the Commonwealth Act;
partly cancelled
means –
(a) in relation to a permit or licence – cancelled as to one or more but
not all of the blocks the subject of the permit 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 granted and in force under Part III ;
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) of this
definition 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 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 the adjacent area or not;
pipeline licence means a
licence granted and in force under Part III to construct and operate a
pipeline;
pipeline licensee means the registered holder of a pipeline licence;
prescribed means prescribed by the regulations;
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 39 (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 39A (1) ;
primary licence means a licence granted on an application under section 39 (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, 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,
pipeline licence, special prospecting authority, or access authority;
the
regulations means regulations made and in force under this Act;
the
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 block 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
(d) in relation to a pipeline licence that is no longer in force – that
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, lease, or licence, means –
(a) the period from and including the date from which the permit, lease, or
licence comes into force to the end of the month of the year during which the
date occurs; and
(b) each month thereafter;
Safety Authority means the National Offshore
Petroleum Safety Authority established by the Commonwealth Act;
secondary
licence means a licence granted on an application under section 39 (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 granted and in
force 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 62
or under the Commonwealth Act or a corresponding law;
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 a sea-bed 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) If at any time the breadth of the territorial sea is determined or
declared to be greater than 3 nautical miles, the definition of the adjacent
area in subsection (1) continues to have effect as if the breadth of the
territorial sea of Australia had continued to be 3 nautical miles.
(3) When an area described in paragraphs (a) , (b) , and (c) of the
definition of adjacent area becomes an area which is –
(a) not the subject of a permit; and
(b) not the subject of a licence; and
(c) not the subject of an application for a licence –
the area ceases to
be part of the adjacent area.
(4) In this Act, a reference to the term of a permit, lease, licence,
pipeline licence, special prospecting authority, or access authority is a
reference to the period during which the permit, lease, licence, pipeline
licence, special prospecting authority, or access authority remains in force
and a reference to the date of expiration of a permit, lease, licence,
pipeline licence, special prospecting authority, or access authority is a
reference to the day on which the permit, lease, licence, pipeline licence,
special prospecting authority, or access authority ceases to be in force.
(5) In this Act, a reference to a year of the term of a permit, lease,
licence, or pipeline licence is a reference to a period of 1 year commencing
on the day on which the permit, lease, licence, or pipeline licence, as the
case may be, comes into force or on any anniversary of that day.
(6) In this Act, a reference to the renewal, or to the grant of a
renewal, of a permit is a reference to the grant of a permit in respect of all
or some of the blocks specified in the first-mentioned permit to commence on
the day after the date of expiration of the first-mentioned permit or on the
day after the date of expiration of the permit granted upon a previous renewal
of the first-mentioned permit.
(6A) In this Act, a reference to the renewal, or the grant of a renewal,
of a lease is a reference to the grant of a lease in respect of the blocks in
respect of which the first-mentioned lease was in force to commence on the day
after the date of expiration of the first-mentioned lease or on the day after
the date of expiration of the lease granted upon a previous renewal of the
first-mentioned lease.
(7) In this Act, a reference to the renewal, or to the grant of a
renewal, of a licence in respect of the blocks specified in the licence is a
reference to the grant of a licence in respect of those blocks to commence on
the day after the date of expiration of the first-mentioned licence or on the
day after the date of expiration of the licence granted upon a previous
renewal of the first-mentioned licence.
(8) In this Act, a reference to the renewal, or to the grant of a
renewal, of a pipeline licence in respect of a pipeline is a reference to the
grant of a pipeline licence in respect of that pipeline to commence on the day
after the date of expiration of the first-mentioned pipeline licence or on the
day after the date of expiration of the pipeline licence granted upon a
previous renewal of the first-mentioned pipeline licence.
(9) In this Act, a reference to a pipeline includes a reference to a
part of a pipeline.
(10) In this Act, a reference to a permit, lease, licence, pipeline
licence, or access authority is a reference to the permit, lease, licence,
pipeline licence, or access authority as varied for the time being under this
Act.
(11) A power conferred by this Act to make, grant, or issue an
instrument or a notice shall be construed as including a power, exercisable in
the same manner and subject to the same conditions (if any), to revoke or vary
the instrument or notice.
(12)
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(13)
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(14)
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(15)
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(16) For the purposes of this Act –
(a) the space above or below the adjacent area shall be deemed to be in that
area; and
(b) the space above or below an area that is part of the adjacent area shall
be deemed to be in that part.
