(1) A permittee, lessee or licensee may make an application to the Minister for the grant of an access authority to enable him or her to carry on in an area, being part of the adjacent area that is not part of the permit area, lease area or licence area, petroleum exploration operations or operations related to the recovery of petroleum in or from the permit area, lease area or licence area.
(1A) A holder of an extra-State title may make an application to the Minister for the grant of an access authority to enable the holder to carry on, in a part of the adjacent area, petroleum exploration operations or operations related to the recovery of petroleum in or from the area to which that extra-State title relates.
(1B) The holder of a special prospecting authority may make an application to the Minister for the grant of an access authority to enable the applicant to carry on petroleum exploration operations in an area, being part of the adjacent area not included in any block that is the subject of the special prospecting authority.
(1C) The holder of a permit, lease, licence or special prospecting authority may make an application to the Minister for the grant of an access authority to enable the applicant to carry on, in a block or blocks within an adjoining adjacent area—
(a) petroleum exploration operations, or
(b) where the applicant is the holder of a permit, lease or licence, operations related to the recovery of petroleum in or from any block within the New South Wales adjacent area that is the subject of the permit, lease or licence.
(2) An application under this section—
(a) shall be in accordance with an approved form,
(b) shall be made in an approved manner,
(c) shall specify the operations that the applicant proposes to carry on and the area in which the applicant proposes to carry on those operations, and
(d) may set out any other matters that the applicant wishes the Minister to consider.
(3) The Minister may—
(a) if the Minister is satisfied that it is necessary or desirable to do so for the more effective exercise of the rights, or for the proper performance of the duties, of a permittee, lessee, licensee, holder of a special prospecting authority or holder of an extra-State title who has made an application under this section, grant to him or her an access authority subject to such conditions as the Minister thinks fit and specifies in the access authority, and
(b) at any time, by instrument in writing served on the registered holder of an access authority so granted, vary the access authority.
(4) The Minister shall not grant an access authority on an application under a provision of this section other than subsection (1C) in respect of a block that is the subject of a permit, lease, licence or special prospecting authority of which the registered holder is a person other than the applicant, or vary such an access authority as in force in respect of a block that is the subject of a permit, lease, licence or special prospecting authority of which the registered holder is a person other than the registered holder of the access authority, unless—
(a) the Minister has, by instrument in writing served on that person, given not less than 1 month’s notice of the Minister’s intention to grant, or vary, as the case may be, the access authority,
(b) the Minister has served a copy of the instrument—
(i) on such other persons, if any, as he thinks fit, and
(ii) in a case where he intends to vary an access authority—on the registered holder of the access authority,
(c) the Minister has, in the instrument—
(i) given particulars of the access authority proposed to be granted, or of the variation proposed to be made, as the case may be, and
(ii) specified a date on or before which a person on whom the instrument, or a copy of the instrument, is served may, by instrument in writing served on the Minister, submit any matters that the Minister wishes the Minister to consider, and
(d) the Minister has taken into account any matters so submitted to the Minister on or before the specified date by a person on whom the firstmentioned instrument, or a copy of that instrument, has been served.
(4A) The Minister shall not grant or vary an access authority on an application under subsection (1C) without the approval of the Designated Authority for the adjoining adjacent area within which the block or blocks to be specified in the access authority are situated.
(4B) Where the approval of the Minister is sought in respect of—
(a) an application under a corresponding law for the grant of an access authority in respect of a block within the New South Wales adjacent area that is the subject of a permit, lease, licence or special prospecting authority of which the registered holder is a person other than the applicant, or
(b) a proposal to vary an access authority granted on an application under a corresponding law, in respect of a block within the New South Wales adjacent area that is the subject of a permit, lease, licence or special prospecting authority of which the registered holder is a person other than the registered holder of the access authority,
the Minister shall not approve the grant or the variation unless—
(c) the Minister has, by instrument in writing served on that person, given not less than 1 month’s notice of the intention to grant, or vary, as the case may be, the access authority, and
(d) a copy of the instrument has been served—
(i) on such other persons, if any, as the Minister thinks fit, and
(ii) where it is proposed to vary an access authority—on the registered holder of the access authority, and
(e) the instrument gives—
(i) particulars of the access authority that it is proposed to grant or vary, as the case may be, and
(ii) notice that a person on whom the instrument, or a copy of the instrument, has been served may, by instrument in writing served on the Minister on or before the date specified in the instrument, submit any matters that the person wishes the Minister to consider, and
(f) the Minister has taken into account any matters submitted in accordance with the notice referred to in paragraph (e) (ii).
(5) An access authority, while it remains in force, authorizes the holder, subject to this Act and the regulations and in accordance with the conditions to which the access authority is subject, to carry on, in the area specified in the access authority, the operations so specified.
(6) Nothing in an access authority authorizes the holder to make a well.
(7) An access authority comes into force on the day specified for the purpose in the access authority and, unless surrendered or cancelled, remains in force for such period as is so specified but may be extended by the Minister for a further period.
(8) An access authority—
(a) may be surrendered by the holder at any time by instrument in writing served on the Minister, and
(b) may be cancelled by the Minister at any time by instrument in writing served on the holder and on any person in whose permit area, lease area or licence area operations may be carried on in pursuance of the access authority.
(9) Where an access authority has been surrendered or cancelled or has expired, the Minister may, by instrument in writing served on the person who was the holder of the access authority, direct that person to do any 1 or more of the following things—
(a) to remove or cause to be removed from the relinquished area all property brought into that area by any person engaged or concerned in the operations authorized by the access authority or to make arrangements that are satisfactory to the Minister with respect to that property,
(b) subject to this Part and to the regulations, to make provision, to the satisfaction of the Minister, for the conservation and protection of the natural resources in that area,
(c) to make good, to the satisfaction of the Minister, any damage to the sea-bed or subsoil in that area caused by any person engaged or concerned in those operations.
(10) A person to whom a direction is given under subsection (9) shall comply with the direction.
Maximum penalty—100 penalty units.
(11) The holder of an access authority shall, if the access authority is in force in respect of an area that consists of, or includes, a block that is the subject of a permit, lease or licence of which he or she is not the registered holder, furnish to the registered holder of that permit, lease or licence, within 28 days after the end of each month during which the access authority is in force in respect of that block, a full report, in writing, of the operations carried on in that block during that month and a summary of the facts ascertained from those operations.
Maximum penalty—50 penalty units.
(12) Section 109 applies to and in relation to an access authority as if—
(a) a reference in that section to a permit were a reference to an access authority, and
(b) a reference in that section to a direction or an arrangement under section 108 were a reference to a direction or an arrangement under subsection (9).
(13) In this section—
adjoining adjacent area means an adjacent area (within the meaning of a corresponding law) that adjoins the New South Wales adjacent area.
Designated Authority, in relation to an adjoining adjacent area, means the Minister of State administering the corresponding law in respect of the adjoining adjacent area.
extra-State title means an authority, however described, granted under a corresponding law in respect of the exploration for, or the recovery of, petroleum.
s 113: Am 1985 No 129, Sch 7 (17); 1986 No 59, Sch 7 (18); 1991 No 6, Sch 1 (28); 1991 No 85, Sch 2 (4); 1992 No 112, Sch 1.