Gas (Amendment) Act, 2000

Power to allocate use of certain amount of capacity of natural gas network.

2.—(1) In this section, “relevant purposes” means—

(a) the purposes of supplying natural gas to a single generating station (constructed by or on behalf of the person who, by virtue of being selected, is entitled to use the capacity of the natural gas network in that regard) for the purpose of providing energy for the generation of electricity at that station, and

(b) such other purposes involving the use of that capacity, being purposes which the Commission is satisfied are of a limited and special nature and approves in writing before that capacity is put to such use.

(2) The Minister may, after consultation with the Commission, make regulations providing that each of 2 or more persons who are selected in that behalf, in accordance with the regulations, shall have the right to employ, for the relevant purposes, the procedure specified in section 10 as respects such an amount of the capacity of the natural gas network as is determined in respect of that person in accordance with the regulations.

(3) Regulations shall provide for—

(a) a procedure whereby persons are selected by the Commission as the persons who shall each have relevant rights,

(b) the determination by the Commission of the respective amounts of the capacity of the natural gas network, and the types of that capacity, as respects which each of the persons to be so selected shall, in any period of 12 months or less that is specified in the regulations, have relevant rights.

(4) Regulations shall provide—

(a) that amongst the persons who may be selected there may be selected a company of which the Board has control (but not the Board itself),

(b) that, as respects 2 or more persons who are associated companies of one another, only one of those persons may be selected (but nothing in this paragraph shall be construed as preventing 2 or more such persons from being selected as persons who shall jointly have relevant rights).

(5) Regulations shall contain a provision that any relevant right shall be enjoyed by the person concerned—

(a) for such period as is specified in the regulations in relation to that right (not being a period that expires after 30 September 2004), and

(b) subject to the person's compliance with such terms and conditions as are specified in relation to that right in the regulations or by the Commission in selecting that person in accordance with the regulations.

(6) Without prejudice to subsection (5), regulations may in relation to a relevant right include—

(a) a provision that that right shall stand forfeited in relation to that person if he or she fails to comply with a specified term or condition referred to in subsection (5)(b) or paragraph (c) (not being a term or condition to which the provision referred to in paragraph (b) applies),

(b) a provision enabling the Commission, where the nature of the failure to comply concerned is of such seriousness as, in the opinion of the Commission, warrants the Commission so doing, to decide that that right shall stand forfeited in relation to that person on a date specified by the Commission if the person has failed to comply with a specified term or condition referred to in subsection (5)(b) or paragraph (c) (not being a term or condition to which the provision referred to in paragraph (a) applies),

(c) a provision specifying that that right shall be enjoyed subject to the person concerned complying with one or more than one condition precedent specified in the regulations or by the Commission in making the selection (including a condition precedent that specified stages in the construction of the planned generating station are completed on or before specified dates).

(7) Regulations shall specify that the aggregate of the amounts referred to in subsection (3)(b) shall not exceed 3.3 million standard cubic metres of natural gas per day (and that aggregate is referred to in this Act as the “total available capacity”).

(8) Regulations shall provide that the Commission, in determining the respective amounts of the capacity referred to in subsection (3)(b), shall have regard to the need to ensure that as much of the total available capacity as is possible will be utilised for the generation of electricity.

(9) Regulations shall provide that a person who has been selected may, at any time after the determination referred to in subsection (3)(b) has been made in relation to him or her, request the Commission to vary the types of the capacity of the natural gas network, the subject of that determination in relation to him or her, by increasing the proportion of that capacity which is interruptible as distinct from firm in any particular period and that the Commission shall consider such a request and, if after consultation with the Board, it is satisfied that such an increase—

(a) is practicable from a technical standpoint, and

(b) will not adversely affect the relevant rights of the other persons selected or the rights of any other persons to use the capacity of the natural gas network,

shall make such a variation and, accordingly, increase the said proportion of capacity by such amount as it considers appropriate.

(10) The procedure referred to in subsection (3)(a) shall provide for the following matters—

(a) a requirement that a person wishing to be selected under that procedure make an application in that behalf to the Commission,

(b) a requirement that such an application shall be in such form, contain such particulars and be made to the Commission before such date as the Commission determines,

(c) a requirement that the making of such an application shall be accompanied by the payment by the applicant to the Commission of a fee of an amount specified in the regulations (which amount shall not exceed £10,000), and

(d) a requirement that an applicant supply such information as the Commission may reasonably require and requests the applicant to supply to it for the purpose of its deciding whom should be selected under the procedure.