Petroleum Act 1987

10 Financial resources

(1) At any time after the Secretary of State has given a notice under section 1(1) to any person and before he has approved an abandonment programme for the installation or pipe-line concerned, he may by written notice require that person within such time as may be specified in the notice—

(a) to provide such information relating to the financial affairs of that person, and

(b) to supply copies of such documents relating to those affairs,

as may be so specified.

(2) In order to satisfy himself that a person who has a duty to secure that an abandonment programme is carried out will be capable of discharging that duty, the Secretary of State may at any time by written notice require that person, within such time as may be specified in the notice—

(a) to provide such information, and

(b) to supply copies of such documents,

as may be so specified.

(3) A person who—

(a) without reasonable excuse fails to comply with a notice under subsection (1) or subsection (2), or

(b) in purported compliance with such a notice provides information which he knows to be false in a material particular or recklessly provides information which is false in a material particular,

shall be guilty of an offence.

(4) If the Secretary of State is not satisfied that a person will be capable of discharging the duty imposed on him by section 8, he may by written notice, after consulting the Treasury, require that person to take such action as may be specified in the notice within such time as may be so specified.

(5) The Secretary of State shall not give notice to a person under subsection (4) without first giving him an opportunity to make written representations as to whether the notice should be given.

(6) A person who fails to comply with a notice under subsection (4) shall be guilty of an offence unless he proves that he exercised due diligence to avoid the failure.