Gas Act 1972

2 Principal duties and powers of Corporation

(1) It shall be the duty of the Corporation to develop and maintain an efficient, co-ordinated and economical system of gas supply for Great Britain, and to satisfy, so far as it is economical to do so, all reasonable demands for gas in Great Britain.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, the Corporation shall have power to carry on all such activities as it may appear to them to be requisite, advantageous or convenient for them to carry on for or in connection with the discharge of their duty under subsection (1) above, including in particular, but without prejudice to the generality of the preceding provision, power—

(a) to search and bore for and get natural gas,

(b) to bore for and get petroleum found in the form of crude oil in the course of searching, boring for or getting natural gas, to treat any petroleum got by virtue of this paragraph for the purpose of rendering it saleable in the form of crude oil, to supply or sell any such petroleum (whether or not so treated) to any person, and to supply or sell to any person any by products obtained in the process of treating any such petroleum for the purpose of rendering it so saleable,

(c) to manufacture gas (and to use for that purpose any petroleum, whether got by virtue of paragraph (b) above or otherwise),

(d) to acquire gas from any source,

(e) to transmit and distribute gas,

(f) to manufacture, treat, render saleable, supply or sell any by-products obtained in the process of manufacturing gas, and any products made or derived from gas or from any by-product so obtained,

(g) to manufacture plant required by the Corporation, and to instal, repair, maintain or remove any such plant, and

(h) to manufacture gas fittings, to sell, hire or otherwise supply gas fittings, and to instal, repair, maintain or remove gas fittings.

In this subsection " petroleum " means petroleum within the meaning of the [1934 c. 36.] Petroleum (Production) Act 1934.

(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2) above, the Corporation shall not, except with the consent of the Secretary of State and in accordance with any conditions he may attach to his consent—

(a) carry out any operations for searching or boring for natural gas, or for getting natural gas, otherwise than within Great Britain, the territorial waters of the United Kingdom adjacent to Great Britain or an area for the time being designated under section 1(7) of the [1964 c. 29.] Continental Shelf Act 1964. or

(b) export gas, or

(c) manufacture gas fittings for export.