The Oil Taxation (Gas Banking Schemes) Regulations 1982

Conditions for elections

5.—(1) The consent of the Board shall be obtained before an election is made by the participators in the relevant fields that the modifications shall apply in the case of a gas banking scheme.

(2) An application for the consent of the Board to the making of an election—

(a) shall be made, in such form as the Board may prescribe, jointly by the responsible persons within three months after the end of the chargeable period in which gas is first transferred under the scheme or, in the case of a scheme under which gas has been transferred before these Regulations come into operation, before 1st May 1982; and

(b) shall be accompanied by the agreement or agreements constituting the scheme, the undertaking referred to in paragraph (5) below and such other documents and information as the Board may require.

(3) A separate application under paragraph (2) above shall be made on behalf of all the participators in the relevant field in respect of each scheme that is in force between them.

(4) If the Board are of the opinion that the documents or information accompanying an application under paragraph (2) above are not sufficient to enable them to decide whether to consent to the making of an election, they shall within three months of the receipt thereof notify in writing to the responsible persons what further documents or information they require for that purpose.

(5) In connection with an application under paragraph (2) above the participators in each relevant field shall undertake to the Board, in consideration of the Board's consent to the making of an election in respect of the scheme to which the application relates—

(a) that they will, within three months after the making of an election, accept a variation of the provisions of any licence granted under the Petroleum (Production) Act 1934 or the Petroleum (Production) Act (Northern Ireland) 1964 in respect of the licensed area of which the relevant field in which they are participators forms part, in terms proposed by the Secretary of State for Energy or by the Department of Commerce for Northern Ireland as the case may be, to the effect that gas transferred under the scheme shall, so long as the election is in force, be—

(i) disregarded in determining the value of petroleum relating to any chargeable period for the purpose of the payment of royalty, and the quantity of petroleum won and saved in any half year for the purpose of delivery of petroleum to the Minister, under a licence in respect of a licensed area of which a transferor field forms part, and

(ii) taken into account in determining the value of petroleum relating to the chargeable period, and the quantity of petroleum won and saved in the half-year, in which it is so transferred for the purpose of the payment of royalty and delivery of petroleum to the Minister under a licence in respect of a licensed area of which a transferee field forms part; and

(b) that they will each use gas which is transferred to them under the scheme for one or more of the following purposes, and for no purpose other than these, namely—

(i) sale to the British Gas Corporation,

(ii) production purposes in relation to the transferee field on the footing that such gas has been won from the field, or

(iii) in an emergency, flaring or venting at any place outside the transferor field.

(6) The Board shall not consent to the making of an election in respect of a gas banking scheme unless the participators in each relevant field show to the satisfaction of the Board that they entered into the scheme for bona fide commercial reasons.

(7) The Board shall within three months from the receipt of an application under paragraph (2) above give notice of their decision in writing to the responsible persons consenting to or refusing consent to the making of an election and, subject to paragraph (8) below, if no such notice has been given within the said period of three months, the Board will be deemed to have so consented.

(8) In any case where the Board have notified to the responsible persons that they require further documents or information in accordance with paragraph (4) above the period of three months referred to in the preceding paragraph shall not commence until the Board have received the further documents or information so required.

(9) If a participator in a relevant field is in breach of an undertaking given by him to the Board under paragraph (5)(a) above or ceases to be a party to the scheme other than on the transfer of his interest in the field to another person who becomes a party to it or the scheme ceases to be a gas banking scheme, the Board may at any time thereafter by notice in writing to the responsible persons revoke their consent to the making of an election in respect of the scheme and any election which has been made shall thereupon cease to be in force and be treated as if it never was in force and the Board may make such assessments or determinations or such amendments of assessments or determinations in relation to petroleum revenue tax and supplementary petroleum duty and the inspector may make such assessments or adjustments to assessments to income tax or corporation tax (notwithstanding that the assessments concerned may have become final or that the time for making assessments may have expired) as may be necessary in the circumstances.