112Access authorities

#### 112 Access authorities (1) A permittee, lessee or licensee may make an application to the Designated Authority in respect of the adjacent area, or the part of the adjacent area, in which the blocks that the permit, lease or licence relates to are located, for the grant of an access authority to enable him to carry on, in an area, being part of that adjacent area, or that part of an 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 a State title may make an application to the Designated Authority 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 State title relates. (1B) The holder of a special prospecting authority may make an application to the Designated Authority 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 in respect of a block or blocks within an adjacent area, or a part of an adjacent area, may make an application to the Designated Authority for that adjacent area, or that part of an adjacent area, for the grant of an access authority to enable the applicant to carry on, in a block or blocks in an adjacent area, or a part of an adjacent area, adjoining the first‑mentioned adjacent area, or part of an 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 that is the subject of the permit, lease or licence. (2) An application under this section: (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 Designated Authority to consider. (3) The Designated Authority may: (a) if he 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 a State title who has made an application under this section, grant to him an access authority subject to such conditions as the Designated Authority thinks fit and specifies in the access authority; and (b) at any time, by instrument in writing served on the registered holder or an access authority so granted, vary the access authority. (4) Subject to subsection (4AA), the Designated Authority, in respect of an adjacent area, or a part of an adjacent area, shall not grant an access authority on an application under a provision of this section other than subsection (1C) in respect of a block in that adjacent area, or that part of an 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 vary such an access authority as in force in respect of a block in that adjacent area, or that part of an 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, unless: (a) he has, by instrument in writing served on that person, given not less than one month’s notice of his intention to grant, or vary, as the case may be, the access authority; (b) he 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) he 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 Designated Authority, submit any matters that he wishes the Designated Authority to consider; and (d) he has taken into account any matters so submitted to him on or before the specified date by a person on whom the first‑mentioned instrument, or a copy of that instrument, has been served. (4AA) Subsection (4) does not apply if the holder of the permit, lease, licence or special prospecting authority has consented in writing to the grant of the access authority. (4A) The Designated Authority shall not grant or vary an access authority on an application under subsection (1C) without the approval of the Designated Authority for the adjacent area, or the part of an adjacent area, within which the block or blocks to be specified in the access authority are situated. (4B) Where: (a) an application under subsection (1C) for the grant of an access authority is in respect of the 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 (b) a proposal to vary an access authority granted on an application under that subsection is 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; the Designated Authority for the adjacent area, or the part of an adjacent area, within which the block is situated shall not approve the grant or the variation unless: (c) the Designated Authority has, by instrument in writing served on that person, given not less than one month’s notice of the intention to grant, or vary, as the case may be, the access authority; (d) a copy of the instrument has been served: (i) on such other persons, if any, as the Designated Authority thinks fit; and (ii) where it is proposed to vary an access authority—on the registered holder of the access authority; (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 Designated Authority on or before the date specified in the instrument, submit any matters that the person wishes the Designated Authority to consider; and (f) the Designated Authority has taken into account any matters submitted in accordance with the notice referred to in subparagraph (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 Designated Authority for a further specified period. (8) An access authority: (a) may be surrendered by the holder at any time by instrument in writing served on the Designated Authority; and (b) may be cancelled by the Designated Authority 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 Designated Authority may, by instrument in writing served on the person who was the holder of the access authority, direct that person to do any one 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 Designated Authority with respect to that property; (b) subject to this Part and to the regulations, to make provision, to the satisfaction of the Designated Authority, for the conservation and protection of the natural resources in that area; and (c) to make good, to the satisfaction of the Designated Authority, 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. 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 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. Penalty: 50 penalty units. (12) Section 108 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 107 were a reference to a direction or an arrangement under subsection (9) of this section. (13) In this section, State title means an authority, however described, under a law of a State or of the Northern Territory, to explore for, or to recover, petroleum.