The Gas (Applications for Licences and Extensions and Restrictions of Licences) Regulations 1996

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Gas (Applications for Licences and Extensions and Restrictions of Licences) Regulations 1996 and shall come into force on 1st March 1996.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the Act” means the Gas Act 1986;

“the 1995 Act” means the Gas Act 1995;

“application” means an application for a licence, an application for an extension of a licence or an application for a restriction of a licence under the Act; and references to an application in respect of a licence shall be construed accordingly;

“the Director” means the Director General of Gas Supply;

“domestic premises” means premises supplied or to be supplied with gas by a gas supplier at a rate which is reasonably expected not to exceed 2,500 therms a year;

“extension”, in relation to a public gas transporter licence, means an extension of the licence under section 7(4) of the Act and, in relation to a gas supplier licence or a gas shipper licence, means an extension of the licence under section 7A(4) of the Act(1);

“gas shipper licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7A(2) of the Act;

“gas supplier licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7A(1) of the Act;

“public gas transporter licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7 of the Act;

“restriction”, in relation to a gas supplier licence or a gas shipper licence, means a restriction of the licence under section 7A(6) of the Act.

(2) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, a reference to a standard condition is a reference to a standard condition in relation to licences under section 7, 7A(1) or 7A(2) of the Act, as the case may be, which is determined under section 8(2) of that Act before the day appointed under section 18(2) of the 1995 Act(2).

(3) Unless the context otherwise requires, other expressions appearing in these Regulations shall have the same meaning, if any, as they have in Part I of the Act.

(4) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

(a) any reference to a numbered regulation or Schedule is a reference to the regulation or Schedule bearing that number in these Regulations; and

(b) any reference to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph bearing that number in the regulation in which the reference occurs.

(5) In relation to any time after 31st December 1999—

(a) references in these Regulations to 2,500 and 500,000 therms shall be construed as references to 73,200 and 14,500,000 kilowatt hours respectively; and

(b) other references in these Regulations to therms shall be construed as references to kilowatt hours.

Manner of application

3.  An application shall be—

(a) made in writing, addressed to the Director and delivered or sent by prepaid post to the Director at his principal office; and

(b) signed and dated by or on behalf of the applicant, stating, where signed on behalf of the applicant, the capacity of the signatory.

Form of application

4.—(1) An application shall—

(a) subject to paragraph (2), be in the form specified in Schedule 1 or a form to the like effect, and shall contain the information there specified; and

(b) be accompanied by the information and documents specified in Schedule 2.

(2) Paragraph (1)(a) is not contravened if an application omits such of Parts B, C or D of Schedule 1 as it may be appropriate to omit in the circumstances.

Additional information and documents to accompany application

5.—(1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3)—

(a) an application in respect of a gas supplier licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified in Part I of Schedule 3;

(b) an application in respect of a gas shipper licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified in Part II of Schedule 3; and

(c) an application in respect of a public gas transporter licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified in Part III of Schedule 3.

(2) The obligation imposed by paragraph (1) shall, to the extent that information and documents are specified in Schedule 3 by reference to, or in relation to, a standard condition, apply—

(a) subject to paragraph (3), in the case of an application for a licence, other than for a gas supplier licence of the type described in section 8(2) of the Act, as if the standard condition in question were to be incorporated in any licence granted as a result of the application;

(b) in the case of an application for an extension or restriction of a licence, in relation to such of the standard conditions in question as have been incorporated in the licence.

(3) where a modification to any standard condition is specified in accordance with paragraph 3(1) of Part A of Schedule 1, the obligation imposed by paragraph (2)(a) above shall be modified accordingly.

Application fees

6.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), each application of the description specified in column 1 of Schedule 4 shall be accompanied by the corresponding fee specified in column 2 of that Schedule.

(2) Where more than one such fee would, apart from this paragraph, be payable in respect of a particular application, only the higher or highest such fee, as the case may be, shall be payable.

Notice of applications

7.—(1) The period prescribed for the purpose of section 7B(2) of the Act (notice of applications) is seven days.

(2) The notice of application to be published within the prescribed period shall be published—

(a) in the London Gazette; and

(b) except in the case of an application which—

(i) relates solely to premises in any part of England and Wales; and

(ii) if it is for the extension or restriction of a licence, is made in respect of a licence which relates solely to such premises,

• in the Edinburgh Gazette.

(3) Notice of an application in respect of a gas supplier licence which would authorise, or authorises, the supply of gas to domestic premises to which gas is to be, or is, conveyed by a public gas transporter shall also be published within the prescribed period—

(a) where the application relates to premises of a specified description and is not limited to premises situated in an area specified in the application, in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout Great Britain;

(b) where the application relates to premises situated in an area specified in the application, in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout that area;

(c) where the application relates to particular premises, in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout the area or areas in which those premises are situated.

(4) Notice of an application in respect of a public gas transporter licence shall also be published within the prescribed period—

(a) where the application relates to the conveyance of gas through pipes to premises in an authorised area, in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout that area;

(b) where the application relates to the conveyance of gas through pipes to—

(i) any pipe-line system operated by another public gas transporter; or

(ii) any such system of a specified description, not being limited to any such system operated in an area specified in the application,

• in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout Great Britain;

(c) where the application relates to the conveyance of gas through pipes to—

(i) a particular pipe-line system operated by another public gas transporter; or

(ii) any pipe-line system (whether of a specified description or not) operated by another public gas transporter in an area specified in the application,

• in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout—

  (aa)

  the area through which gas is expected to be conveyed by the applicant to the pipe-line system or area to which the application relates;

  (bb)

  in the case mentioned in sub-paragraph (c)(i) above, the area where the pipe line system in question is operated; and

  (cc)

  in the case mentioned in sub-paragraph (c)(ii) above, the area specified in the application.

(5) The applicant shall deliver, or send by prepaid post, a copy of the London and, if applicable, Edinburgh Gazettes and of each newspaper in which notice of the application is published in accordance with this regulation to the Director at his principal office.

(6) In this regulation “the prescribed period” means the period referred to in paragraph (1).

Consultation period for certain public gas transporter licence extensions

8.—(1) Where a public gas transporter applies only for such an extension to which either or both of paragraphs (2) or (3) apply, the minimum period which the Director may allow for making representations or objections under section 7(5)(c) of the Act shall be 14 days.

(2) This paragraph applies to an extension which relates to an area—

(a) which does not exceed 100 hectares; and

(b) to which the transporter may reasonably be expected to convey gas at a rate which does not exceed 500,000 therms a year.

(3) This paragraph applies to an extension which relates to any pipe-line system operated by another public gas transporter which is designed to receive gas at an operating pressure not exceeding 7 bar gauge.

Tim Eggar

Minister for Industry and Energy

Department of Trade and Industry

28th February 1996