Petroleum and Submarine Pipe-lines Act 1975

24 Termination of authorisations

(1) An authorisation shall cease to be in force—

(a) in the case of an authorisation which does not contain terms providing for its duration to be unlimited, on the expiration of the period of its duration as specified by or ascertained under the terms of the authorisation unless it has previously ceased to be in force by virtue of the following provisions of this subsection ; or

(b) if the holder and the Secretary of State agree in writing that the authorisation is to cease to be in force at a particular time during its currency, at that time; or

(c) if the Secretary of State serves a notice on the holder in pursuance of—

(i) the duty imposed on the Secretary of State by the following subsection, or

(ii) the provisions of subsection (4) of this section,

at the time specified in the notice.

(2) If it appears to the Secretary of State that the execution of works authorised by a works authorisation (disregarding the execution of any of the works which he considers should be disregarded for the purposes of this subsection) has not been begun at the expiration of—

(a) the period of three years beginning with the date when the authorisation is expressed to come into force ; or

(b) such longer period beginning with that date as the Secretary of State has, on the application of the holder, specified in a notice served for the purposes of this paragraph on the holder during the said period of three years,

it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to serve on the holder a notice stating that the authorisation is to cease to be in force at a time specified in the notice.

(3) The Secretary of State shall not serve notice in pursuance of an application made by virtue of paragraph (b) of the preceding subsection unless—

(a) he is satisfied that notice of the application has been served on—

(i) the persons on whom, in pursuance of Schedule 4 to this Act, notice was served of the application in consequence of which the relevant authorisation was issued or on such of those persons as the Secretary of State considers appropriate in the circumstances, and

(ii) such other persons, if any, as he considers appropriate in the circumstances; and

(b) he has considered any representations about the application made by virtue of the said paragraph (b) which were made to him in writing, during such a period as he considers reasonable, by any of the persons as to whom he is satisfied as mentioned in the preceding paragraph.

(4) If the Secretary of State is of opinion, after giving the holder of an authorisation an opportunity of making representations in writing to him about the matter and considering any such representations then made by the holder, that the holder—

(a) has contravened a term of the authorisation; or

(b) has contravened any provision of a notice which, in pursuance of section 22 or 23 of this Act, was served on him in his capacity as the owner of the pipe-line or the proposed owner of the proposed pipe-line to which the authorisation relates,

the Secretary of State may serve on the holder a notice stating that the authorisation is to cease to be in force at a time specified in the notice; but the Secretary of State shall not serve such a notice on the holder in consequence of a contravention if the Secretary of State considers that, having regard to the nature and consequences of the contravention and to any previous contravention, it would be unreasonable to terminate the authorisation in consequence of the contravention and that the holder has taken adequate steps to prevent similar contraventions in future.

(5) When an authorisation ceases to be in force it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to publish in the London and Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes, or in such of them as he considers appropriate, a notice stating that it has ceased to be in force.