{"id":"the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940","name":"The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940","slug":"the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"wa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":110603,"registerId":"wa-the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-03","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940","content":"![Crest]()Western Australia\n\nThe Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940\n\nWestern Australia\n\nThe Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940\n\nContents\n\n1. Short title 2\n\n2. Interpretation 2\n\n3. Limits of the Act 3\n\n4. Power to construct works 3\n\n5. Notice to be served and plan deposited before breaking up streets etc. 4\n\n6. Streets, etc., broken up to be reinstated without delay 5\n\n7. Penalty for breaking up without notice or delay in reinstating 6\n\n8. In cases of delay other parties may reinstate and recover expenses 6\n\n9. Company to make compensation for any damage 7\n\n10. Power to local authority to alter situation of pipes etc. 7\n\n11. Offences 7\n\n12. Damages for accidentally damaging works etc. 8\n\n13. Court in which proceedings to be taken 8\n\n14. Payment in lieu of rates etc. 9\n\n15. Act to be deemed a public Act for certain purposes 9\n\n16. Deposit 10\n\n17. Works completed or commenced before the commencement of the Act to be authorised works 10\n\nNotes\n\nCompilation table 11\n\nDefined terms\n\n  \n\nWestern Australia\n\nThe Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940\n\nAn Act to grant to the Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited, powers and provisions for the storage and supply of oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene and petroleum products, and for other purposes.\n\nPreamble\n\nWhereas the construction of reservoirs and works as hereinafter provided, and the storage, supply and distribution therein, therefrom, and thereby of oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene and petroleum products within the area hereinafter defined, would be of public and local advantage: And whereas The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited, duly formed and registered as a limited company under the Companies Acts of the State of Victoria, is seized and possessed of or entitled to use and possession of North Fremantle town lot 23, and part of North Fremantle town lot 28 (and may hereafter acquire other lands within the limits hereinafter mentioned), and is willing and proposes at its own expense to construct and erect thereon the necessary storage tanks, reservoirs, and works for the storage, supply, and distribution of oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene and petroleum products: And whereas it is desirable and expedient to grant to and confer upon the said company the powers, rights, and privileges hereinafter appearing:\n\nBe it therefore enacted by the King’s Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia, in this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same, as follows: —\n\n##### 1. Short title\n\nThis Act may be cited as *The* *Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940* 1.\n\n##### 2. Interpretation\n\nIn this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —\n\n  Company means The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited 2, and shall include its assigns.\n\n  Crown lands includes lands vested in the Minister for Lands 3 or any other Minister or person on behalf of the Crown.\n\n  Local authority means, within their respective jurisdictions, the mayor and councillors of the municipality of North Fremantle 4, the Commissioner of Railways 5, the Fremantle Port Authority, and The Metropolitan Water Supply, Sewerage, and Drainage Department 6.\n\n  Railway has the meaning defined by the *Government Railways Act 1904*.\n\n  Street includes any street, highway, lane, public road, thoroughfare, passage, footpath, pavement, or place within the area hereinafter defined.\n\n  Undertaking means the receipt, storage, supply, and distribution of oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene and petroleum products within the limits herein mentioned, and the making and constructing of all works connected therewith, and all other works authorised by this Act, and the doing of all things necessary or convenient therefor, subject to the provisions of this Act.\n\n  Wharf includes any wharf, dock, quay, jetty, landing stage, or other landing place, and approaches thereto.\n\n  Works means all buildings, erections, storage tanks, reservoirs, works, plant, machinery, apparatus, equipment, pipes, mains, connections, and all other works connected with and incidental to the undertaking or by this Act or in any other way authorised to be constructed or undertaken by the company.\n\n[Section 2 amended: No. 5 of 1999 s. 21.]\n\n##### 3. Limits of the Act\n\nThe limits of this Act shall extend to and include —\n\n(a) the area within the boundaries of the municipality of North Fremantle 4;\n\n(b) so much of the area of the lands and property vested in the Fremantle Port Authority as is contained within the inner harbour in the description of the Port of Fremantle under the *Port Authorities Act 1999*, or which may hereafter be vested in, acquired, or held by the port authority, or which may be placed or be in the custody, possession, or control of the port authority or over which the port authority may exercise authority or control;\n\n(c) so much of the area of any Crown lands or lands vested or which may become vested in the Honourable the Minister for Railways or the Minister 7 of the Crown administering the *Government Railways Act 1904*, for the time being respectively as adjoins or abuts on the lands and property of the Fremantle Port Authority above described, or lies between the same lands and property and the boundaries of the municipality of North Fremantle 4; and\n\n(d) so much of the area of any Crown lands as is affected by the works authorised by this Act to be carried out by the company.\n\n[Section 3 amended: No. 5 of 1999 s. 21; No. 74 of 2003 s. 117.]\n\n##### 4. Power to construct works\n\nSubject to the provisions and within the limits of this Act, the company may —\n\n(a) erect, construct, lay down, establish, fix, maintain, and repair all necessary works and do and perform all such other acts and things as may be thought necessary for receiving, storing, supplying, and distributing oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene and petroleum products in, on, or under any street or in, on, or under any Crown lands, or in, on, or under any railway or wharf;\n\n(b) open, break up, and interfere with any Crown lands, street, railway, or wharf, and any sewer, water pipe, drain, or tunnel on or under any Crown lands, street, railway, or wharf and may lay down and place in, on, or under any Crown lands, street, railway, or wharf, mains, conduits, service pipes, and other works for receiving, storing, supplying, and distributing oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene and petroleum products, and also may from time to time repair, alter, or remove the same and for the purposes aforesaid may remove or use all earth and material in, on, or under such Crown lands, street, railway, or wharf:\n\nProvided that the power to open, break up, or interfere with any Crown lands, railway, or wharf shall not be exercised without the consent of the Minister 7 administering the *Land Act 1933* 8, or the *Government Railways Act 1904*, or the *Port Authorities Act 1999*, respectively, subject to such conditions as the Minister may deem expedient:\n\nProvided also, that all plans and specifications for the construction of the necessary works for receiving, storing, supplying, and distributing in, on, or under any street shall first be submitted to and approved of by the Minister for Works 9.\n\n[Section 4 amended: No. 5 of 1999 s. 21.]\n\n##### 5. Notice to be served and plan deposited before breaking up streets etc.\n\nBefore the company proceeds to open, break up, or interfere with any Crown lands, street, railway, wharf, sewer, water pipe, drain, or tunnel, it shall give to the Minister for Works 9 and/or to the local authority concerned notice in writing of its intention so to do not less than 3 clear days before commencing such work, and shall at the same time deposit with the Minister or local authority a plan setting forth the extent to and the manner in which it proposes to carry out such work, and the time at which it is intended to commence the same, and (except as hereinafter provided) no Crown lands, street, railway, wharf, sewer, water pipe, drain, or tunnel shall be opened, broken up, or interfered with unless under the superintendence of the Minister or local authority, and in accordance with the plan deposited as aforesaid:\n\nProvided always, that if no officer appointed by the Minister or local authority attends at the time fixed in such notice and remains during the opening, breaking up, or interference with any street, railway, wharf, sewer, water pipe, drain, or tunnel the company may perform the work specified in such notice and set out in such plan without such superintendence:\n\nProvided further, that in cases of emergency arising from accidents to or defects in the works necessitating the opening, breaking up of, or interference with any street, railway, wharf, sewer, water pipe, drain, or tunnel, such accidents or defects may be repaired without previous notice and without the deposit of any plan, but such notice shall be given and such plan shall be deposited as soon as possible after the commencement of the work or the necessity for the same has arisen.\n\n##### 6. Streets, etc., broken up to be reinstated without delay\n\nWhenever the company opens, breaks up, or interferes with any Crown lands, street, railway, wharf, sewer, water pipe, drain, or tunnel, it shall, with all convenient speed, complete the work and fill in the ground and reinstate and make good the same to the satisfaction of the Minister or local authority, and carry away all rubbish occasioned by the work, and whilst any street, railway, or wharf shall be opened, broken up, or interfered with, the company shall cause the same to be properly guarded and sufficiently lighted for the warning of the public, and shall, when and as required by the Minister or the local authority, keep so much of any street, railway, or wharf as has been opened, broken up, or interfered with in good repair for 6 months after replacing and making good the same.\n\n##### 7. Penalty for breaking up without notice or delay in reinstating\n\nIf the company commits, permits, or suffers any act, delay, neglect, or omission contrary to the provisions of sections 5 and 6, it shall be guilty of an offence against this Act and be liable to a penalty not exceeding $100 for every such offence, and an additional penalty of $4 for each day during which any such neglect, omission, or delay shall continue after notice thereof by the Minister or local authority:\n\nProvided that nothing in this section contained shall relieve the company from liability in respect of the right of action or remedy of any person for any act, delay, neglect, or omission on the part of the company contrary to the provisions of sections 5 and 6.\n\n[Section 7 amended: No. 113 of 1965 s. 8(1).]\n\n##### 8. In cases of delay other parties may reinstate and recover expenses\n\nIf any such delay, neglect, or omission as aforesaid take place, the Minister or local authority may cause the work so delayed, neglected, or omitted, to be executed and performed, and all expenses so incurred shall be repaid to such Minister or local authority by the company:\n\nProvided that nothing in this section contained shall render it compulsory for the Minister or local authority to execute or perform any such work, or render it liable for delay, neglect, or failure so to do.\n\n##### 9. Company to make compensation for any damage\n\nThe company shall do as little damage and cause as little inconvenience as may be in the execution of the powers conferred by this Act, and shall make compensation for any physical damage which may be done in the execution of such powers.\n\n##### 10. Power to local authority to alter situation of pipes etc.\n\nIf at any time the Minister or the local authority deems it fit, necessary, or expedient to require the company to raise, sink, or otherwise alter the situation of any works which shall have been erected, constructed, laid down, or fixed contrary to any of the provisions of this Act, or in breach of any condition imposed by the Minister as provided in section 4, or for any other reason, then the company shall, within a reasonable time, after being required so to do by notice in writing, raise, sink, or otherwise alter the situation of such works accordingly, and in default it shall be lawful for the Minister or the local authority to cause such works to be so raised, sunk, or the situation thereof otherwise altered, and the expenses thereof shall, if rendered necessary by reason of a breach by the company of any of the provisions of this Act, or of any such condition as aforesaid, or any other default of the company, be borne and paid by the company, and shall in any other case be borne and paid by the Minister or the local authority:\n\nProvided that if in raising, sinking, or otherwise altering the situation of any of the works for any reason other than a breach by the company of any of the provisions of this Act, any injury shall be done to the same by any person employed by the local authority, full compensation shall be made by the local authority to the company for such injury.\n\n##### 11. Offences\n\nAny person who —\n\n(a) lays or causes to be laid any pipe to connect with any pipe belonging to the company without the consent of the company first had and obtained for that purpose; or\n\n(b) wilfully or by negligence removes, destroys, or damages any part of the works or other property of the company; or\n\n(c) alters the index to any meter or other recording or measuring apparatus for registering the quantity of oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene or petroleum products supplied; or\n\n(d) erects or keeps erected any apparatus or fitting whereby oil, liquid fuel, petroleum spirits, kerosene or petroleum products may be obtained from any part of the works of the company without the consent in writing of the company first had and obtained for that purpose,\n\nshall be guilty of an offence against this Act, and shall, without prejudice to any other right or remedy of the company to recover damages, be liable to a penalty not exceeding $10 for every such offence.\n\n[Section 11 amended: No. 113 of 1965 s. 8(1).]\n\n##### 12. Damages for accidentally damaging works etc.\n\nEvery person who unlawfully or wrongfully breaks, throws down, or damages any of the works the property of the company or under its control, shall pay to the company full compensation for such damage, which compensation may be recovered by the company in any Court of competent jurisdiction.\n\n##### 13. Court in which proceedings to be taken\n\nAll penalties in respect of offences under this Act may be recovered in a Court of summary jurisdiction.\n\n##### 14. Payment in lieu of rates etc.\n\n(1) The mains, conduits, service pipes, and other works of the company in, on, or under any Crown lands, street, railway, or wharf shall be deemed to be rateable land, but in lieu of the provisions of the *Municipal Corporations Act 1906* 10, relating to the valuation of land and the making of rates in respect thereof, the company shall pay to the council in each and every year of the company’s operations subsequent to the date on which it shall commence to construct its works and undertakings, a sum of $70.\n\n(2) The amount to be paid by the company under this section shall be paid by half‑yearly payments, the first of which shall be made on the expiration of 6 months from the date on which the company shall commence to construct its works and undertakings, and shall be in full satisfaction and discharge of all rates and rents, if any, payable to the council in respect of such mains, conduits, service pipes, and other works in, on, or under any Crown lands, street, railway, or wharf as aforesaid, or the easement or rights conferred by this Act with regard to such mains, conduits, service pipes, and other works.\n\n(3) In this section council means the mayor and councillors of the municipality of North Fremantle 4.\n\n[Section 14 amended: No. 113 of 1965 s. 8(1).]\n\n##### 15. Act to be deemed a public Act for certain purposes\n\n(1) This Act shall, for the purpose of evidence only, be judicially noticed as if it were a public Act and need not be specially pleaded.\n\n(2) This Act shall be amended only by a private Act, unless otherwise determined by a resolution of both Houses of the Parliament.\n\n##### 16. Deposit\n\nThe money deposited by the company with the Treasurer, in accordance with the Joint Standing Orders relating to Private Bills, shall be held by the Treasurer until completion of the work aforesaid, and thereupon be returned to the company.\n\n##### 17. Works completed or commenced before the commencement of the Act to be authorised works\n\nAny works already completed or commenced by the company prior to the commencement of this Act shall for all purposes be deemed to be works authorised by this Act.\n\nNotes\n\n1 This is a compilation of *The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940* and includes the amendments made by the other written laws referred to in the following table. The table also contains information about any reprint.\n\nCompilation table\n\n| **Short title** | **Number and year** | **Assent** | **Commencement** |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| *The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940* | 1940 (4 and 5 Geo. VI) | 30 Dec 1940 | 30 Dec 1940 |\n| *Decimal Currency Act 1965* | 113 of 1965 | 21 Dec 1965 | Act other than s. 4-9: 21 Dec 1965 (see s. 2(1));   s. 4-9: 14 Feb 1966 (see s. 2(2)) |\n| *Port Authorities (Consequential Provisions) Act 1999* s. 21 | 5 of 1999 | 13 Apr 1999 | 14 Aug 1999 (see s. 2 and *Gazette* 13 Aug 1999 p. 3823) |\n| *Statutes (Repeals and Minor Amendments) Act 2003* s. 117 | 74 of 2003 | 15 Dec 2003 | 15 Dec 2003 (see s. 2) |\n| **Reprint 1: *The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (Private), Act 1940* as at 1 Apr 2005** (includes amendments listed above) | | | |\n\n\n2 As at the date this reprint was prepared the company was called BP Australia Pty Ltd.\n\n3 At the date this reprint was prepared the title of the Minister responsible for land administration was the Minister for Planning and Infrastructure.\n\n4 The Municipality of North Fremantle became part of the City of Fremantle on 1 Nov 1961.\n\nUnder the *Local Government Act 1995* Sch. 9.3, municipal districts existing as at 1 July 1996 continued as districts under that Act and municipalities continued as local governments. Under Sch. 9.3 cl. 3(2) a reference to a municipality may, where the context so requires, be read as if it had been amended to include or be a reference to a local government under that Act.\n\n5 The former Commissioner of Railways has been replaced by the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia.\n\n6 At the date this reprint was prepared the title of the agency responsible for water supply, sewerage and drainage was the Water Corporation.\n\n7 As at the date this reprint was prepared the title of the Minister administering these Acts was the Minister for Planning and Infrastructure.\n\n8 Repealed by the *Land Administration Act 1997.*\n\n9 At the date this reprint was prepared, the former Minister for Works was known as the Minister for Housing and Works.\n\n10 Repealed by the *Local Government Act 1960* the  relevant provisions of which were repealed by the *Local Government Act 1995*.\n\nDefined terms\n\n*[This is a list of terms defined and the provisions where they are defined. The list is not part of the law.]*\n\n**Defined term Provision(s)**\n\nCompany 2\n\nCrown lands 2\n\nLocal authority 2\n\nRailway 2\n\nStreet 2\n\nUndertaking 2\n\nWharf 2\n\nWorks 2\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The legislation has undergone significant scope drift through administrative evolution rather than substantive amendment. Originally enacted in 1940 for 'Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited'—a joint venture between the Australian government and the Anglo-Persian Oil Company—the Act now applies to BP Australia Pty Ltd, a completely different corporate entity through successive acquisitions and restructures. The geographic scope has also shifted: the 'municipality of North Fremantle' ceased to exist in 1961 (absorbed into City of Fremantle), yet the Act continues to reference this defunct jurisdiction through statutory interpretation rules. The $70 annual payment in lieu of rates (section 14), fixed since at least 1965, has become economically anachronistic—originally representing meaningful compensation, now a nominal token due to inflation. The Act's original purpose was facilitating wartime fuel security infrastructure; it now operates as a permanent private benefit for a multinational oil corporation, with the 'public advantage' rationale of the preamble becoming increasingly tenuous as the industrial context has transformed."},"complexity_factors":["8 defined terms in the interpretation section, including circular definitions ('Works' refers to 'works')","Multiple nested provisos (especially sections 4, 5, 7, 10) creating conditional exceptions to general powers","Cross-references to 5 external statutes (Government Railways Act 1904, Port Authorities Act 1999, Land Act 1933, Municipal Corporations Act 1906, Local Government Act 1995) requiring knowledge of superseded legislation","Geographic scope defined through complex boundary descriptions involving municipal boundaries, port authority lands, Crown lands, and railway corridors","Dual consent requirements from multiple ministers and local authorities with overlapping jurisdictions","Emergency repair provisions creating exceptions to notice requirements with post-hoc compliance obligations","Amendment restrictions in section 15(2) requiring private Acts or special parliamentary resolutions","Historical institutional name changes tracked through 10 footnotes explaining successor bodies (e.g., Commissioner of Railways → Public Transport Authority, North Fremantle municipality → City of Fremantle)"],"plain_english_summary":"This is a Western Australian law from 1940 that gives special powers to a specific oil company—originally called Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (now BP Australia)—to build and operate fuel storage and distribution facilities in North Fremantle and the Fremantle Port area.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Grants construction powers**: The company can build storage tanks, pipelines, and other infrastructure on streets, Crown land, railways, and wharves in the defined area.\n- **Regulates street works**: The company must give 3 days' notice before digging up roads or other public areas, must reinstate them promptly, and faces fines ($100 plus $4 per day) for delays or failing to follow procedures.\n- **Protects infrastructure**: It creates offences for tampering with company equipment, unauthorised connections to pipes, or damaging works—carrying penalties up to $10 per offence.\n- **Sets compensation rules**: The company must pay for any physical damage caused during construction, and third parties who accidentally damage company property must pay full compensation.\n- **Provides a tax alternative**: Instead of paying standard council rates on its underground pipes and equipment, the company pays a fixed annual sum of $70 to the local council.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- **BP Australia Pty Ltd** (formerly Commonwealth Oil Refineries)—the sole beneficiary of these special statutory powers.\n- **Local authorities**—specifically the City of Fremantle (formerly North Fremantle), Fremantle Port Authority, railway authorities, and water/sewerage departments—who supervise works and can require alterations to company infrastructure.\n- **The general public**—who are protected by requirements for proper guarding and lighting of worksites, and who face penalties for interfering with company property.\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis is a **private Act**—legislation crafted specifically for one company rather than applying to everyone equally. It was created to facilitate oil storage and distribution infrastructure in Fremantle during World War II (1940), recognising this as being in the public interest. The Act remains significant because it continues to grant special legal privileges to what is now BP Australia, including the right to dig up public roads and land with minimal notice compared to ordinary planning laws, and to pay a fixed nominal rate ($70/year—unchanged since at least 1965) rather than standard commercial rates."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act remains narrowly focused on authorising a specific company to construct and operate petroleum storage and distribution works within the defined Fremantle/North Fremantle area and adjoining Crown lands (s.2–s.4, s.17). Subsequent amendments reflected administrative updates (ministerial titles and agency names), conversion to decimal currency and the inclusion or updating of references to the Fremantle Port Authority and other modern statutory instruments (see compilation notes and amendments). Those changes are administrative and clarifying rather than a substantive broadening of the Act’s original purpose."},"complexity_factors":["Narrow geographic scope limited to a few specified areas (s.3)","Seven defined terms in the interpretation section (s.2)","Several cross‑references to other statutes and agencies (Land Act 1933, Government Railways Act 1904, Port Authorities Act 1999, Municipal Corporations Act 1906)","A small number of conditional provisos and exceptions (provisos in s.4 and s.5; emergency exception in s.5)","Multiple operational requirements with timelines (3 clear days notice in s.5; 6 months maintenance in s.6)","Fixed monetary figures and penalty amounts introduced by later amendments (s.7, s.11, s.14)","Private Act status and deposit mechanics (s.15(2), s.16)"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this Act does (mechanically)**\n\n- Grants The Commonwealth Oil Refineries, Limited (the “company” — now known in reprints as BP Australia Pty Ltd) statutory powers to build, operate and maintain petroleum storage and distribution works (tanks, pipes, mains, plant and related apparatus) within a defined local area (see sections 2, 3 and 4).\n- Defines the geographic limits where those powers apply: the former Municipality of North Fremantle, the inner harbour/lands of the Fremantle Port Authority, adjoining Crown lands and any Crown land affected by the company’s works (s.2, s.3).\n- Authorises the company to open and work in streets, railways, wharves and Crown land to place and repair its works, subject to ministerial and local authority consent, plan approval and supervision (s.4–s.6).\n- Requires the company to give written notice and deposit a plan at least 3 clear days before breaking up streets or similar, with emergency exceptions (s.5).\n- Obligates the company to reinstate works promptly, keep disturbed areas guarded/ lit, and (if required) maintain repaired work for six months; failure incurs penalties and daily fines and exposes the company to being required to reimburse authorities that carry out the reinstatement (s.6–s.8).\n- Gives local authorities and ministers discretion to require the company to alter, raise or sink works; if the change is required because of the company’s breach the company pays; otherwise the local authority bears the cost but must compensate the company for damage caused by the authority’s works (s.10).\n- Creates criminal/penalty offences for unauthorised pipe connections, damaging the company’s works, tampering with meters, or installing apparatus to draw product without consent; penalties are specified (s.11–s.12, s.13).\n- Treats the company’s underground mains and conduits as rateable land but substitutes a fixed payment in lieu of ordinary municipal rates (a statutory annual payment and half‑yearly instalments) (s.14).\n- Preserves previously constructed or commenced works as lawful (s.17), provides for deposits under Private Bill practice to be held by the Treasurer until works are complete (s.16), and makes the Act judicially noticeable for evidence purposes (s.15).\n\n**Who is affected**\n\n- The company and its assigns (defined term) who acquire construction and operating rights under the Act (s.2).\n- Local authorities listed in the Act (originally the mayor and councillors of North Fremantle; by modern reading that role is performed by the City of Fremantle and other named agencies such as the Fremantle Port Authority, rail and water authorities) (s.2, notes to reprint).\n- Ministers responsible for land, railways and works because they have approval and supervision powers (s.4–s.5).\n- The public and businesses using streets, wharves and rail areas where the company works (because those areas may be opened and reinstated and must be guarded), and any person or firm seeking to connect to the company’s pipes (s.5, s.6, s.11).\n\n**Why it matters (purpose claims and practical effects)**\n\n- The preamble states the grant of powers is “of public and local advantage” and that the company proposes to construct storage and distribution facilities at its own expense. That is the Act’s stated purpose (Preamble).\n\n- Practical effect: the Act creates durable statutory rights and permissions for a private company to occupy and use specified public and Crown land for petroleum storage and distribution (s.4, s.14). Those rights include easement‑style powers to place pipes and plant under streets, railways and wharves, limited by procedural safeguards (notice, plans, supervision) and by ministerial/local authority conditions (s.4–s.6).\n\n- Who pays and who decides: the company bears most operating and reinstatement obligations and liability for damage caused by its works (s.6, s.9). Ministers and local authorities keep administrative control through approval, supervision and the power to require alterations (s.4, s.5, s.10). If the company fails to comply, the authority may do the work and recover costs from the company (s.8).\n\n**Costs, incentives, trade‑offs and implementation considerations**\n\n- Concentrated benefit: the company receives exclusive statutory rights to build and operate local petroleum infrastructure (s.4, s.11(a)). That creates a strong, concentrated private benefit for the company.\n\n- Diffuse costs and revenue trade‑off: the Act substitutes a fixed annual payment in lieu of ordinary municipal rates (s.14). Historically that amount was modest (originally a nominal sum), so the return to the local council may be small relative to market rental or rate revenue foregone; the Act fixes the company’s payment obligation rather than leaving it to ordinary valuation mechanisms (s.14(1)–(2)).\n\n- Compliance burden and operational risk for the company: the company must prepare plans, give notice, allow supervision (or act only where no officer attends), promptly reinstate and guard works, and pay compensation for damage (s.5–s.7, s.9). Failure triggers pecuniary penalties and exposure to third‑party claims.\n\n- Bureaucratic discretion and administrative control: ministers/local authorities approve plans, may supervise work, may impose conditions (s.4–s.5), and may require alteration/relocation of works (s.10). That creates administrative discretion over siting and technical standards; costs fall to the company if the alteration is required because of the company’s breach, otherwise to the authority (s.10).\n\n- Effects on competition and private choice: the Act prohibits third parties from connecting to company pipes without consent (s.11(a)), and makes unauthorised extraction an offence (s.11(d)). Those provisions concentrate control of distribution infrastructure in the company and can limit competing access absent negotiated consent.\n\n- Implementation risk and enforcement: enforcement is largely by local authorities and ministers through supervision, reinstatement powers, recovery of costs, and modest statutory penalties (s.7, s.8, s.11–s.13). The Act assumes local enforcement capacity to supervise and recover costs where necessary.\n\n**Other noteworthy mechanical details**\n\n- Works begun before the Act took effect are validated as authorised (s.17).\n- The Act is a private Act and may only be amended by private Act unless both Houses resolve otherwise (s.15(2)).\n- The Treasurer holds any deposits required by Private Bill practice until completion (s.16).\n\n**Source‑linked observations**\n\n- Authorising provisions: s.2 (definitions), s.3 (limits), s.4 (powers to construct), s.5–s.6 (procedural safeguards and reinstatement), s.7–s.8 (penalties and recovery), s.10 (authority to require alterations), s.11–s.13 (offences and courts), s.14 (payment in lieu of rates), s.15–s.17 (administrative provisions).\n\n"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope cannot be assessed as the legislative text was not available for analysis. No comparison between original intent and final form is possible."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative text was retrievable — only a webpage error message was provided","Complexity cannot be meaningfully assessed without the actual Act content","Score of 1 reflects absence of data, not simplicity of the underlying law"],"plain_english_summary":"This appears to be a 1940 Western Australian Act concerning Commonwealth Oil Refineries Limited, likely altering the company’s legal or ownership status (e.g., privatisation, incorporation or similar), so it would have affected the company, the petroleum-refining sector and government ownership interests. Given its age it is probably spent or repealed. For the full text, consult the WA legislation site or the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office helpdesk."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940","history":"/api/acts/the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940/history","analysis":"/api/acts/the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/the-commonwealth-oil-refineries-limited-private-act-1940/documents"}}