11.—(1) Where it appears to the Scottish Ministers that an application which has been referred to them for determination is an EIA application and is not accompanied by a statement referred to by the applicant as an environmental statement for the purposes of these Regulations, the Scottish Ministers must notify the applicant in writing that the submission of an environmental statement is required and must send a copy of that notification to the planning authority.
(2) The Scottish Ministers must notify the applicant in accordance with paragraph (1) within three weeks beginning with the date they received the application or such longer period as they may reasonably require.
(3) An applicant who receives a notification under paragraph (1) may within three weeks beginning with the date of the notification write to the Scottish Ministers stating that an environmental statement will be provided and may under regulation 15 ask the Scottish Ministers to make a scoping direction.
(4) If the applicant does not write in accordance with paragraph (3), the Scottish Ministers are under no duty to deal with the application, and at the end of the three week period the Scottish Ministers must inform the applicant in writing that no further action is being taken on the application.
(5) Where the Scottish Ministers have given a notification under paragraph (1), they are to determine the application only by refusing planning permission if the applicant does not submit an environmental statement.