Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959 (Cth)

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959
- Updated as at 1 March 1994 (#DATE 01:03:1994)

*1* The Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959 as shown in this reprint comprises Act No. 60, 1959 amended as indicated in the Tables below.

Table of Acts
Act Date Date of Application
Number and of Assent Commencement saving or
Year transitional
provisions
Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959
60, 1959 4 Nov 1959 4 Nov 1959
Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1961
74, 1961 27 Oct 1961 27 Oct 1961 S. 9 (2)
Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1964
57, 1964 2 June 1964 Ss. 3 (1), 4 and 5: S. 3 (3)
3 Sept 1964 (see Gazette
1964, p. 3483)
Remainder:Royal Assent
Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1967
43, 1967 25 May 1967 25 May 1967 -
Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1969
38, 1969 14 June 1969 14 June 1969 S.11
Statute Law Revision Act 1973
216, 1973 19 Dec 1973 31 Dec 1973 Ss. 9 (1) and 10
Administrative Changes (Consequential Provisions) Act 1976
91, 1976 20 Sept 1976 S. 3: (a) S. 4
Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act (No. 2) 1982
80, 1982 22 Sept 1982 Part LXXVII (s. 280): S. 280
Royal Assent (b) (2) and (3)
(a) The Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959 was amended by section 3 only of the Administrative Changes (Consequential Provisions) Act 1976, subsection 2 (7) of which provides as follows:
"(7) The amendments of each other Act specified in the Schedule made by this Act shall be deemed to have come into operation on 22 December 1975."
(b) The Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959 was amended by Part LXXVII (section 280) only of the Statute Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act (No. 2) 1982, subsection 2 (1) of which provides as follows:
"(1) Sections 1, 2, 166 and 195 and Parts III, VI, VII, XVI, XXXVI, XLIV, LI, LIII, LIV, LXI and LXXVII shall come into operation on the day on which this Act receives the Royal Assent."
Table of Amendments
ad=added or inserted am=amended rep=repealed rs=repealed and substituted
Provision affected How affected
Title rs. No. 38, 1969
S. 3 am. No. 74, 1961; No. 57, 1964; No.
38, 1969; No. 216, 1973; No. 91,
1976; No. 80, 1982
S. 4 am. No. 216, 1973
S. 5 rep. No. 216, 1973
S. 7 am. No. 74, 1961; No. 38, 1969
S. 9 am. No. 74, 1961; No. 57, 1964; No.
38, 1969
S. 9A ad. No. 74, 1961
am. No. 57, 1964
rep. No. 38, 1969
S. 10 am. No. 74, 1961; No. 57, 1964; No.
38, 1969
S. 10A ad. No. 74, 1961
am. No. 216, 1973; No. 91, 1976
S. 11 rs. No. 74, 1961
am. No. 57, 1964; No. 43, 1967; No.
38, 1969
S. 13 ad. No. 74, 1961
am. No. 38, 1969

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 
- TABLE OF PROVISIONS 
TABLE

                         TABLE OF PROVISIONS

Section

    1.    Short title

    2.    Commencement

    3.    Interpretation

    4.    Extension of Act

    6.    Subsidy

    7.    Approval of operations

    8.    Grant of subsidy

    9.    Amount of subsidy

   10.    Terms and conditions of agreement

  10A.    Delegation

   11.    Operation to be carried out within specified period

   12.    Statement for Parliament

   13.    Regulations

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - LONG TITLE 
SECT

             An Act to Encourage the Search for Petroleum by

   Subsidizing Exploration Drilling Operations and Geophysical Surveys

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 1 
Short title 
SECT

  1. This Act may be cited as the Petroleum Search Subsidy Act 1959.*1*
SEE NOTES TO FIRST ARTICLE OF THIS CHAPTER .

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 2 
Commencement 
SECT

  2. This Act shall come into operation on the day on which it receives the
Royal Assent.*1*
SEE NOTES TO FIRST ARTICLE OF THIS CHAPTER .

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 3 
Interpretation 
SECT

  3. (1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

  "agreement" means an agreement under this Act for the payment of subsidy in
respect of an approved operation;

  "approved operation" means an operation approved by the Minister for the
purposes of this Act;

  "Australia" includes the Territories to which this Act extends;

  "Exploration drilling operation" means:

  (a) an undertaking in connexion with the search for petroleum in Australia
or in a submarine area, consisting of:

    (i) the drilling of a hole where the purpose of the drilling is, or

is to a substantial extent, the obtaining of stratigraphic information; or

    (ii) the drilling of a hole in a known rock sequence for the purpose

of determining the presence or absence of petroleum; or

  (b) a part of an undertaking referred to in the last preceding paragraph;

but does not include an undertaking consisting of drilling for the purpose of
determining the limits of a pool of petroleum or a part of such an
undertaking;

  "geophysical survey" means a survey employing magnetic, seismic, gravimetric
or other physical methods for the purpose of obtaining information in
connexion with the search for petroleum in Australia or in a submarine area
but does not include a survey of a borehole;

  "operation" means an exploration drilling operation or a geophysical
survey;

  "person" includes a partnership or syndicate;

  "petroleum" means naturally occurring hydrocarbons in a free state, whether
gaseous, liquid or solid, but does not include coal or shale or any substance
that may be extracted from coal, shale or other rock by the application of
heat or by a chemical process;

  "submarine area" means a submarine area in the vicinity of Australia and
beyond the mean low water mark (other than a submarine area beneath internal
waters of Australia), and includes the waters and airspace above such an
area;

  "subsidy" means subsidy under an agreement;

  "the Secretary" means the Secretary to the Department.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 4 
Extension of Act 
SECT

  4. This Act extends to Papua New Guinea.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 6 
Subsidy 
SECT

  6. (1) Subsidy is payable in accordance with agreements entered into by the
Minister under this Act in relation to the approved operations to which the
agreements relate.


  (2) Subsidy under an agreement is payable to the person with whom the
Minister enters into the agreement.


  (3) Subsidy is payable out of moneys appropriated by the Parliament for the
purposes of this Act.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 7 
Approval of operations 
SECT

  7. (1) A person who proposes to carry out an operation in Australia or in a
submarine area may lodge with the Secretary an application in writing for the
Minister's approval of the proposed operation.


  (2) The applicant shall furnish to the Secretary:

  (a) particulars of the reason for carrying out the proposed operation,
including an appreciation of the geology of the area in which the proposed
operation is to be carried out and of the new stratigraphic, structural or
reservoir information that the proposed operation is expected to provide;

  (b) particulars of the estimated costs of carrying out the proposed
operation;

  (c) particulars of the work comprising the proposed operation and of the
times at which it is intended to commence and to complete the various stages
of the proposed operation;

  (d) particulars of any contract that the applicant has entered into, or
proposes to enter into, for the performance on behalf of the application by
another person of the whole or any part of the proposed operation or work
connected with the proposed operation;

  (e) information as to the capability, including the financial means, of the
applicant to carry out the proposed operation; and

  (f) such other information as the Secretary requires.


  (2B) Where an applicant for approval of an operation is a company,
partnership or syndicate, or is not resident in Australia, the Secretary may
decline to consider the application unless the applicant satisfies the
Secretary that the applicant has made, or will make, adequate arrangements for
the performance on behalf of the applicant by a competent person resident in
Australia (not being a company, partnership or syndicate) of each of the
following matters:

  (a) the furnishing of information to the Secretary in relation to the
application;

  (b) the carrying on of negotiations concerning the application;

  (c) the carrying on of negotiations as to the terms of an agreement in
respect of the operation and, if the applicant is not resident in Australia,
the entering into of such an agreement in the name of the applicant;

  (d) ensuring the carrying out of the operation in accordance with any
agreement that may be made in respect of the operation; and

  (e) the furnishing of information to the Secretary with respect to the
operation.


  (3) The Secretary shall, after taking into consideration:

  (a) the information furnished by the applicant with respect to the proposed
operation;

  (b) the extent to which the proposed operation is likely to assist in the
search for petroleum in Australia or in submarine areas; and

  (c) any other matters that the Secretary considers to be relevant;

recommend to the Minister whether, for the purposes of this Act, approval
should be given to the proposed operation.


  (4) After considering the recommendation of the Secretary, the Minister may
approve the proposed operation or may refuse his approval.


  (4A) A proposed operation that is to be carried out in connexion with the
search for petroleum in a submarine area is not eligible for approval under
the last preceding subsection unless the Minister is satisfied that natural
persons ordinarily resident in Australia:

  (a) are to pay, in whole or in part, the costs incurred in or in connexion
with the operation; or

  (b) are beneficially interested, directly or indirectly, in the capital of a
corporation that is to pay, in whole or in part, those costs.


  (5) The Secretary shall give notice in writing to the applicant of the
Minister's approval or refusal of approval of a proposed operation.


  (6) The Secretary may, unless otherwise directed by the Minister, defer
making a recommendation in respect of an application under this section for
such time as he thinks fit.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 8 
Grant of subsidy 
SECT

  8. Where the Minister has approved a proposed operation, the Minister may,
in his discretion, enter into an agreement on behalf of the Commonwealth with
the person who made the application for approval for the payment to that
person of subsidy in respect of the operation.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 9 
Amount of subsidy 
SECT

  9. (1) Subject to this section, an agreement shall provide that the subsidy
in respect of the approved operation to which the agreement applies shall be
an amount equal to such part (not exceeding one-half) of the costs incurred by
the person with whom the agreement is made in and in connexion with the
approved operation as is prescribed in relation to a prescribed class of
operations in which the approved operation is included.


  (1A) An agreement in respect of an approved operation that is to be carried
out in connexion with the search for petroleum in a submarine area may provide
that the subsidy shall be an amount equal to such specified part (not
exceeding the part that would, but for this subsection, be applicable) of the
costs referred to in the last preceding subsection as the Minister thinks fit
having regard to:

  (a) if natural persons not ordinarily resident in Australia are to pay those
costs in whole or in part - the extent to which it appears to the Minister
that such persons are to pay those costs; and

  (b) if natural persons not ordinarily resident in Australia are beneficially
interested, directly or indirectly, in the capital of a corporation that is to
pay those costs in whole or in part - the extent to which it appears to the
Minister that such persons are or may be so interested, and the extent to
which the corporation is to pay those costs.


  (2) An agreement may provide that, notwithstanding the provisions of the
agreement giving effect to the preceding provisions of this section, the
amount of the subsidy shall not exceed an amount specified in, or ascertained
in accordance with, the agreement.


  (3) An agreement shall contain provisions specifying the manner in which the
costs incurred in and in connexion with carrying out the approved operation
shall be ascertained for the purposes of the agreement and, without limiting
the generality of the foregoing, the agreement may:

  (a) specify items of cost that shall be taken into account;

  (b) provide that the whole or a specified part of an item of cost specified
in the agreement shall not be taken into account;

  (c) provide for the disallowance, or the variation of the amount, of an item
of cost by the Minister; and

  (d) provide for the disallowance by the Minister, in whole or in part, of
costs incurred in or in respect of a period during which the operation is
interrupted or restricted.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 10 
Terms and conditions of agreement 
SECT

  10. (1) Subject to this Act, an agreement may contain such terms and
conditions as are agreed upon between the Minister and the other party to the
agreement and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the agreement
may make provision for or in relation to:

  (a) the making of payments on account of subsidy and the repayment of any
amount by which payments so made exceed the subsidy;

  (b) the withholding by the Minister of payment of subsidy, or the varying by
the Minister of the amount of subsidy, under circumstances specified in the
agreement;

  (c) the rights and obligations of the parties to the agreement (whether with
respect to subsidy or otherwise):

    (i) in the event of the operation being discontinued before the

operation has been completed;

    (ii) in the event of the operation being extended beyond the limits

approved by the Minister or otherwise being carried out otherwise than in
accordance with the Minister's approval; or

    (iii) in the case of an exploration drilling operation - in the

event of petroleum being discovered in the course of carrying out the
operation;

  (d) the continuation by the Commonwealth of the operation where the
operation has been discontinued or completed;

  (e) the inspection by or on behalf of the Minister of any workings connected
with the operation or of books and records kept in respect of the operation;

  (f) the supplying to the Minister of samples (including, in the case of an
exploration drilling operation, cores and cuttings) and information obtained
during the course of the operation; and

  (g) the publishing by the Commonwealth of scientific and technical
information obtained by reason of the operation.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 10A 
Delegation 
SECT

  10A. (1) The Secretary may, by instrument under his hand, delegate to an
officer of the Department of National Resources, either generally or otherwise
as provided in the instrument of delegation, all or any of his powers and
functions under this Act (except this power of delegation).


  (2) A power or function so delegated may be exercised or performed by the
delegate in accordance with the instrument of delegation.


  (3) A delegation under this section is revocable at will and does not
prevent the exercise of a power or the performance of a function by the
Secretary.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 11 
Operation to be carried out within specified period 
SECT

  11. An agreement shall specify the period, being a period ending not later
than the thirtieth day of June, One thousand nine hundred and seventy-four,
within which the approved operation to which the agreement relates is, unless
otherwise approved by the Minister, to be completed.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 12 
Statement for Parliament 
SECT

  12. The Minister shall, as soon as practicable after the end of each
financial year in which subsidy is paid, cause to be tabled in each House of
the Parliament a statement concerning the operation of this Act, the
applications under section seven of this Act in respect of which the Minister
refused approval or the Secretary deferred a recommendation, and the payment
of subsidy, during that financial year.

PETROLEUM SEARCH SUBSIDY ACT 1959 - SECT 13 
Regulations 
SECT

  13. (1) The Governor-General may make regulations, not inconsistent with
this Act, prescribing all matters which by this Act are required or permitted
to be prescribed, or are necessary or convenient to be prescribed for carrying
out or giving effect to this Act.