Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2018
Thursday 19 April 2018 @ 10.43 a.m. | Legal Research
On 28 March 2018, the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2018 (Cth) (‘the Bill’) was introduced in the House of Representatives in the Commonwealth Parliament. The Bill is for the purpose of making changes relating to regulatory responsibility for offshore greenhouse gas wells and environmental management, and for clarifying the powers of the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA).
Main Amendments
This Bill amends the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 (Cth) (‘the Act’) to make provisions for:
- The transfer of regulatory responsibility of offshore greenhouse gas wells and environmental management from the responsible Minister to the NOPSEMA;
- The strengthening and clarification of the powers of NOPSEMA inspectors for monitoring and enforcement purposes;
- The ensuring of valid designation of areas as ‘frontier areas’ for the purposes of the Designated Frontier Area tax incentives;
- The making of minor technical and policy amendments for improvement of the Act.
Minister's Statements
In his second reading speech, Dr John McVeigh, Minister for Regional Development, Territories and Local Government stated:
On the amendment to designate areas as 'frontier areas', Dr McVeigh noted that the proposed changes would correct a recently discovered administrative oversight:
He stated that the amendment would remove doubt regarding entitlement to deductions under the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax Assessment Act 1987 (Cth) ('the PRRT Act'), saying:
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Sources:
Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill 2018 (Cth), and associated second reading speech and explanatory memorandum as published on TimeBase LawOne.