The Petroleum Act 1998 is an
Act of the
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...
which consolidated arrangements for the licensing, operation and abandonment of offshore installations and pipelines. As a consolidation Act, it did not change the substantive law, although certain Acts were amended and repealed.
Background
This was a consolidation Act which brought together a number of enactments on petroleum. It dealt with rights and licences to search for and get petroleum; the application of criminal and civil law to offshore activities; authorisations for submarine pipelines; and the decommissioning of offshore installations and pipelines. The main Acts which were to be consolidated were the
Petroleum (Production) Act 1934
The Petroleum (Production) Act 1934 (24 & 25 Geo. 5 ch. 36) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which clarified the ownership of underground petroleum, vesting it in the Crown. It made provision for searching and boring for and get ...
; the
Petroleum and Submarine Pipelines Act 1975; the
Oil and Gas (Enterprise) Act 1982
The Oil and Gas (Enterprise) Act 1982 (1982 chapter 23) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which started the process of privatisation of the oil and gas industries in the UK. It empowered the government to float off and sell share ...
; and the
Petroleum Act 1987
The Petroleum Act 1987 (1987 chapter 12) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which updates the arrangements for regulating offshore installations and their operation. In particular it makes provisions for the licensing and the saf ...
, Parts I and II.
The Act vested all rights to the UK’s petroleum resources in the Crown; a right first established by the Petroleum Production Act 1934 (24 & 25 Geo. 5 c. 36). It also established the right to grant licenses to ‘search and bore for and get’ petroleum, to the
Oil and Gas Authority
The North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), known as the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) until March 2022, is a private company limited by shares wholly owned by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. It is responsibl ...
; this was through the retrospective application of the
Energy Act 2016
The Energy Act 2016 (c. 20) is a UK Act of Parliament relating to UK enterprise law and energy in the UK. It created a new Oil and Gas Authority, meaning that a quango rather than a government minister deals with the oil and gas industry.
Conte ...
. The Act also made provision for the abandonment of offshore installations and pipelines. The Act also puts into statute the objective of maximising the economic recovery of the UK’s offshore oil and gas resources (by means of the
Infrastructure Act 2015).
The Act repealed in their entirety the Petroleum Production Act 1934 (24 & 25 Geo. 5 c. 36) and the
Petroleum and Submarine Pipe-lines Act 1975
The Petroleum and Submarine Pipe-lines Act 1975 (1975 chapter 74) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which addressed the licensing, ownership, exploitation, production, transportation, processing and refining of petroleum and pet ...
. (1975 c. 74). It also amended the
Petroleum Act 1987
The Petroleum Act 1987 (1987 chapter 12) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which updates the arrangements for regulating offshore installations and their operation. In particular it makes provisions for the licensing and the saf ...
(1987 c. 12) Parts I and II concerning the abandonment of Offshore Installations and the licensing of petroleum production.
Provisions
Part I Petroleum (sections 1 to 9)
Section 4 has further clauses on licence provisions.
Section 50 of the
Infrastructure Act 2015 appended this section. It defines 'associated
hydraulic fracturing
Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frack ...
' as more than 1,000 cubic metres of fluid per stage, or more than 10,000 cubic metres of fluid in total. In addition, conditions were attached that mean no fracking can take place at a depth shallower than 1,000 meters, and that soil and air monitoring must be put in place. The regulations state that "The associated hydraulic fracturing will not take place within protected
groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...
source areas".
'Protected groundwater source area' does not appear to be defined.
[
]
Part II Offshore activities
Section 10 applied UK criminal law to acts or omissions which takes place on, under or above an offshore installation which would constitute an offences under UK criminal law.
Section 11 applied UK civil law to acts or omissions which takes place on, under or above an offshore installation which would constitute an offences under UK civil law.
Section 12 requires in England and Wales the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions to instigate proceedings for an offence.
Section 13 interpretation of Part II
Part III Submarine pipelines
Section 14 prohibits the construction or use of any controlled pipeline without the written authorisation by the Secretary of State.
Section 15 authorisations may contain limitations or specified conditions
Section 16 modifications to increase capacity or installation of a junction may be specified by the Secretary of State
Section 17 a person may apply to have material conveyed by a pipeline
Section 18 authorisations may be terminated
Section 19 a pipeline which ceases to have an authorisation shall be transferred to and vested in the Secretary of State
Section 20 the Secretary of State may appoint inspectors
Section 21 specifies offences and enforcement
Section 22 criminal proceedings
Section 23 civil liability for breach of statutory duty
Section 24 application of Part III
Section 25 making of orders and regulations
Sections 26, 27 meanings of pipeline and owner
Section 28 interpretation of Part III
Part IV Abandonment of offshore installations
Section 29 Preparation of programmes
Section 30 Persons who may be required to submit programmes
Section 31 Section 29 notices: supplementary provisions
Section 32 Approval of programmes
Section 33 Failure to submit programmes
Section 34 Revision of programmes
Section 35 Withdrawal of approval
Section 36 Duty to carry out programmes
Section 37 Default in carrying out programmes
Section 38 Financial resources
Section 39 Regulations
Section 40 Offences: penalties
Section 41 Offences: general
Section 42 Validity of Secretary of State’s acts
Section 43 Notices
Section 44 Meaning of “offshore installation”
Section 45 Interpretation of Part IV
Part V Miscellaneous and General
Section 46 Northern Ireland and Isle of Man shares of petroleum revenue
Section 47 Loans for development
Section 48 Interpretation
Section 49 Transitional provisions and savings
Section 50 Consequential amendments
Section 51 Repeals and revocations
Section 52 Commencement
Section 53 Short title and extent
Subsequent legislation
The Infrastructure Act 2015 inserted Part 1A into the Petroleum Act 1998. The Energy Act 2016
The Energy Act 2016 (c. 20) is a UK Act of Parliament relating to UK enterprise law and energy in the UK. It created a new Oil and Gas Authority, meaning that a quango rather than a government minister deals with the oil and gas industry.
Conte ...
extended Part 1A.
PART 1A Maximising economic recovery of UK petroleum
Section 9A The principal objective and the strategy
Section 9B Exercise of certain functions of the OGA
Section 9BA Exercise of certain functions of the Secretary of State
Section 9C Carrying out of certain petroleum industry activities
Section 9D Reports by the Secretary of State
Section 9E OGA's security and resilience functions
Section 9F Producing and revising a strategy
Section 9G Procedure for producing and revising a strategy
Section 9H “Upstream petroleum infrastructure” and its owners
Section 9HA “Relevant offshore installations” and their owners
Section 9I Other interpretation
See also
* Petroleum Act
Petroleum Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used internationally for legislation relating to petroleum.
List
Bahamas
* The Petroleum Act 1971
Bangladesh
* The Petroleum Act 1934
India
* The Petroleum Act 1934
Iran
* ...
* Oil and gas industry in the United Kingdom The oil and gas industry plays a central role in the economy of the United Kingdom. Oil and gas account for more than three-quarters of the UK's total primary energy needs. Oil provides 97 per cent of the fuel for transport, and gas is a key fuel fo ...
References
{{UK legislation
Energy law
History of the petroleum industry in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1998
1998 in economics