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30 1976

GAS ACT, 1976

PART V

Miscellaneous

Minister for Industry and Commerce to consult Minister as regards certain applications to him under certain licences and leases.

36. —Where pursuant to—

(a) terms and conditions upon which an exploration licence is granted by the Minister for Industry and Commerce, or

(b) conditions or a subsidiary agreement contained in a petroleum lease,

the approval of the Minister for Industry and Commerce of plans for the development or exploitation of a deposit of natural gas is applied for, the Minister for Industry and Commerce shall, before determining the application, consult the Minister.

Certain gas to be offered for sale to Board.

37. —(1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, all natural gas landed in the State, or got within the jurisdiction of the State, for consumption therein, by the licensee under an exploration licence or the lessee of a petroleum lease shall be offered for sale to the Board on reasonable terms and any gas which is offered pursuant to this section and which is purchased by the Board shall, unless a consent is given by the Minister under section 8 (7) of this Act, be disposed of by the Board for consumption in the State.

(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply as regards natural gas which pursuant to—

(a) terms and conditions upon which an exploration licence is granted by the Minister for Industry and Commerce, or

(b) conditions or a subsidiary agreement contained in a petroleum lease,

the Minister for Industry and Commerce, in approving a plan for the development or exploitation of a deposit of natural gas, requires to be offered for sale to a person, other than the Board, for an industrial purpose specified in the requirement.

(3) If any dispute arises as to the reasonableness of terms on which natural gas is offered for sale to the Board, pursuant to the requirements of subsection (1) of this section, such dispute shall be determined by arbitration pursuant to the Arbitration Act, 1954 , and in determining such a dispute expenses, other than the geological, geophysical, drilling or other exploration expenses which may properly be attributed to the discovery, delineation or development of the deposit from which the relevant natural gas is to be got, shall not be taken into account by the arbitrator.

Safety Regulations.

38. —(1) The Minister may, after consultation with the Minister for Local Government and the Board, make such regulations as he thinks fit for the purpose of securing that the public and land or other property are, as far as is practicable, protected from injury, fire, explosion or other danger arising either from the transmission of natural or other gas by the Board or from the use of any such gas supplied by the Board.

(2) Any person who, whether by act or omission, contravenes or fails to comply with regulations under this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £200.

Extinguishment of public right of way.

39. —(1) The Board may, with the approval of the Minister given after consultation with the Minister for Local Government, by order extinguish a public right of way, but an order made under this section shall be published in the manner specified in regulations made by the Minister and the Minister shall not approve the order unless—

(a) he has caused an oral hearing to be held and has considered any objections to the order duly made within the period prescribed for the purposes of this subsection and not withdrawn and the report of the person who held the hearing, and

(b) he is satisfied that the extinguishment is necessary for the construction, maintenance, repair, replacement or safety of a pipeline or pipeline terminal.

(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to a public right of way over land acquired compulsorily by the Board.

Restriction on construction and operation of pipelines by persons other than Board.

40. —(1) A person, other than the Board, shall not, without giving previous and reasonable notice to the Minister, construct or operate a pipeline on, over or under the surface of land.

(2) Where notice is received by the Minister pursuant to subsection (1) of this section, the Minister shall requre the relevant pipeline to be constructed or operated, as may be appropriate, in accordance with such conditions of the kind mentioned in section 8 (8) of this Act or conditions analogous to all or any of the requirements of section 8 (9) of this Act, as he considers appropriate.

(3) Where the Minister makes a requirement under subsection (2) of this section, the person constructing or operating, as may be appropriate, the relevant pipeline shall comply with the requirement.

Savers.

41. —(1) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as enabling the Board to interfere in any manner without the consent of the Minister for Industry and Commerce with State minerals within the meaning of the Minerals Development Act, 1940 , other than sand, gravel or clay.

(2) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting the operation of the Act of 1960 or the Continental Shelf Act, 1968 , or as authorising the disregard by the Board of any other enactment or of any rule of law.