What it does
The Petroleum Act 1923 (the Act) establishes the legislative framework for the exploration, development, and production of petroleum in Queensland. At its core, s.9 declares that petroleum on or below the surface of all land in Queensland is, and always has been, the property of the Crown, regardless of land tenure. This underpins the State's authority to grant rights to explore and produce via two primary tenures: authorities to prospect (ATP) under Part 4 and petroleum leases (PL) under Part 6.
An ATP (defined in s.2 and granted under s.18) authorises its holder to explore for petroleum (s.2 definition of 'explore') within a defined area, subject to a work program (ss.25–25O). A PL (granted under s.40) confers exclusive rights to extract, recover, and dispose of petroleum (s.44(1)(a)), again subject to a development plan (s.2 definition and Part 6, div 2). The Act mandates conditions (Part 6A), including relinquishment (ss.74A–74G for ATPs), compliance with the land access code (s.74X), and restrictions on flaring/venting (ss.74M, 74S).
Authorised activities (defined in s.2) are limited by overlapping resource rules. For coal or oil shale tenements, Part 6F (ss.76H–78B) requires coordination, CSG statements (s.76U), and prioritisation assessments (ss.76V–76Y). Similar regimes apply to geothermal tenures and GHG authorities in Part 6FA (ss.78CA–78CN). The Act also regulates wells, water observation bores, and water supply bores (Part 6D), decommissioning obligations (ss.75A–75C, 75U–75W), and reporting (Part 6E, including relinquishment reports under s.75Z and end-of-tenure reports under s.76).
Enforcement occurs via noncompliance action (Part 6P, ss.80S–81), which may include amendment, relinquishment, or cancellation (s.80T). Security must be provided (Part 6G, ss.78D–78K), and compensation for land impacts is addressed (Part 6K). Transitional rules in Part 10 preserve historical tenures while aligning them with modern requirements (e.g., ss.171–174 for relinquishment conditions on pre-2005 ATPs).