The Scotland Act 2016, Wales Act 2017 and Onshore Petroleum (Consequential, Transitional and Saving Provisions and Model Clauses) Regulations 2018

Transitional modification of the Petroleum Licensing (Exploration and Production) (Landward Areas) Regulations 2014

14.—(1) This regulation applies until the Welsh Ministers exercise section 4(1)(e) of the Petroleum Act 1998(1).

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), in relation to any licence granted by the Welsh Ministers under section 3 of the Petroleum Act 1998, the 2014 Regulations have effect as if they had been made by the Welsh Minsters.

(3) Paragraph (2) does not apply for the purposes of regulation 2(1A) and Schedules 2B and 3B as inserted by regulation 4(4), (5) and (6) of these Regulations.

(4) In relation to any licence granted by the Welsh Ministers under section 3 of the Petroleum Act 1998, the 2014 Regulations have effect as if—

(a) regulation 1A(1A) as inserted by regulation 4(2) of these Regulations were omitted;

(b) the words inserted in regulation 1A(2) by regulation 4(3) of these Regulations were omitted;

(c) in Schedule 2—

(i) in clause 1(1)—

(aa) in the definition of “Block”, for the words “Aberdeen, AB10” there were substituted “Cardiff, CF10 3NQ”, and

(bb) the definition of “the OGA” were omitted;

(ii) in clauses 5(1)(a) and 7(1), the words “to payment of those sums hereinafter provided for and” were omitted;

(iii) in clause 6(2), the words “to payment of those sums specified in Schedule 2 and” were omitted;

(iv) in clause 20(11), the reference to “OGA” were a reference to “Welsh Ministers or the Secretary of State”;

(v) the following were omitted—

(aa) clause 12;

(bb) clause 30(5);

(cc) clauses 36 and 37;

(dd) clause 41(2)(a);

(ee) clause 44(3) and (4), and

(vi) any other references to “the OGA” were references to “the Welsh Ministers”, and

(d) in Schedule 3—

(i) in clause 1(1), the definition of “the OGA” were omitted;

(ii) in clause 2(1), for the words “payments provided for in clause 7” there were substituted “sums payable to the Oil and Gas Authority”;

(iii) clauses 7 and 18(2)(a) were omitted;

(iv) clause 20(3) were omitted, and

(v) any other references to “the OGA” were references to “the Welsh Ministers”.

(5) In relation to any review under regulation 3 of the 2014 Regulations, regulation 3(1)(a) has effect as if after “Regulations” there were inserted “, except in so far as they apply to any function exercised by the Welsh Ministers”.

(6) In this regulation, the “2014 Regulations” means the Petroleum Licensing (Exploration and Production) (Landward Areas) Regulations 2014.

(1)

Section 4(1) is amended by section 48(6) of the Scotland Act 2016 and S.I. 2016/898. Section 8A(2)(aa), inserted by section 23(3) of the Wales Act 2017 (c.4) with effect from 1 October 2018, provides that in relation to the Welsh onshore area, the Welsh Ministers are the “appropriate minister” for the purposes of section 4(1).