Energy Act 2023

132 Designation: procedure

(1) The Secretary of State must publish a statement setting out—

(a) the procedure that the Secretary of State expects to follow in determining whether to exercise the power under section 131(1), and

(b) how the Secretary of State expects to determine whether the conditions in section 131(2) are met.

(2) A duty imposed by subsection (1) may be satisfied by things done before the passing of this Act (as well as by things done after that time).

(3) A designation notice must include—

(a) a description of the hydrogen pipeline project to which the designation relates,

(b) the Secretary of State’s reasons for the designation,

(c) details of any conditions to which the designation is subject, and

(d) the date of the notice.

(4) The Secretary of State must give the GEMA a copy of a designation notice.

(5) The Secretary of State must publish a designation notice, but may exclude from publication any material the disclosure or publication of which the Secretary of State considers—

(a) would be likely to prejudice the commercial interests of any person, or

(b) would be contrary to the interests of national security.

(6) In this section, “designation notice” means a notice under section 131(1).