The Storage of Carbon Dioxide (Licensing etc.) (Scotland) Regulations 2011
| Year | 2011 |
2011 No. 24
Environmental Protection
The Storage of Carbon Dioxide (Licensing etc.) (Scotland) Regulations 2011
Made 20th January 2011
Laid before the Scottish Parliament 24th January 2011
Coming into force 1st April 2011
The Scottish Ministers make the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 19, 21 and 104(2) of the Energy Act 20081and section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 19722and all other powers enabling them to do so.
These Regulations make provision for a purpose mentioned in section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 and it appears to the Scottish Ministers that it is expedient for references to EU instruments, or provisions of those instruments, in these Regulations to be construed as references to those instruments or provisions as amended from time to time.
General
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Storage of Carbon Dioxide (Licensing etc.) (Scotland) Regulations 2011 and come into force on 1st April 2011.
(2) In these Regulations—
(a)
(a) any reference to a numbered section is to that section of the Energy Act 2008; and
(b)
(b) any reference to an EU instrument, or a provision of such an instrument, is a reference to that instrument or provision as amended from time to time.
(3) In these Regulations—
“appraisal term” has the meaning given by regulation 3(2)(a);
“the authority” means the Scottish Ministers as licensing authority under section 18(2);
“CO2” means carbon dioxide;
“corrective measures plan” has the meaning given by regulation 7(6);
“the Directive” means Directive 2009/31/ECof the European Parliament and of the Council on the geological storage of carbon dioxide and amending Council Directive 85/337/EEC, European Parliament and Council Directives 2000/60/EC, 2001/80/EC, 2004/35/EC, 2006/12/EC, 2008/1/ECand Regulation (EC) No 1013/20063;
“the Environmental Liability Directive” means Directive 2004/35/ECof the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage4;
“the ETS Directive” means Directive 2003/87/ECof the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 2003 establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC5;
“financial security” includes—
(a) a charge over a bank account or any other asset;
(b) a deposit of money;
(c) a performance bond or guarantee;
(d) an insurance policy; and
(e) a letter of credit;
“general exploration licence” means a licence granted by the Secretary of State under section 18(1) which authorises only activities within section 17(2)(c) and the establishment or maintenance of an installation for the purpose of such activities and which—
(a) does not grant to the holder the sole right to carry out exploration of a controlled place, and
(b) is issued in combination with—
(i) a licence under section 4 to explore any controlled place with a view to carrying on activities within section 2(3)(a) to (d) and establish or maintain an installation in a controlled place for the purposes of such exploration, or
(ii) a licence under section 3 of the Petroleum Act 19986to search for petroleum in any area below the low water line or in the seaward areas as defined by regulation 3(1)(a) of the Petroleum (Production) (Seaward Areas) Regulations 19887;
“injection” means injection of carbon dioxide into a storage site;
“legislation” means legislation in force in the United Kingdom (whether passed, or made, before, after or at the same time as the commencement of these Regulations);
“licence” means a licence (other than a general exploration licence or a Scottish exploration licence) granted by the authority under section 18(1) in respect of activities within section 17(2)(a) to (d) (and “licence holder” is to be construed accordingly);
“licensed area” means the area within which activities are authorised under a licence;
“monitoring plan” has the meaning given by regulation 7(5);
“operator” means the person who carries on or controls activities within the meaning of section 17(2) at a storage site;
“post-closure plan” has the meaning given by regulation 12(3) or (4);
“provisional post-closure plan” has the meaning given by regulation 12(2);
“Scottish exploration licence” means a licence granted by the Scottish Ministers under section 18(1) which authorises only activities within section 17(2)(c) and the establishment or maintenance of an installation for the purpose of such activities and which does not grant to the holder the sole right to carry out exploration;
“storage permit” means a consent granted under a licence, authorising the use of a place as a storage site; and
“target date” has the meaning given by regulation 10(3)(a).
(4) The following expressions have the meanings given by Article 3 of the Directive (and cognate expressions are to be construed accordingly)—
“closure” of a storage site;
“corrective measures”;
“CO2 plume”;
“CO2 stream”;
“exploration”;
“hydraulic unit”;
“leakage”;
“migration”;
“significant irregularity”;
“significant risk”;
“storage complex”;
“storage site”;
“substantial change”;
“waste”;
“water column”.
Licences
Limitations on licensing powers
2. A licence may not be granted for the purpose of storing CO2in the water column.
Applications for a licence
3.—(1) An application for a licence must be—
(a)
(a) made in writing and sent to the Scottish Ministers; and
(b)
(b) accompanied by a fee of £2,100.
(2) The application must include either—
(a)
(a) a request that the licence specify a period (the “appraisal term”) during which the licence holder has the right to carry out exploration in the licensed area before making an application for a storage permit; or
(b)
(b) if no such period is requested, a statement of the reasons why such exploration is not considered necessary.
Appraisal or initial term
4.—(1) The appraisal term must not exceed the period necessary to—
(a)
(a) generate the information necessary to select a storage site; and
(b)
(b) prepare the documents required for an application under regulation 6.
(2) Subject to paragraph (1), the appraisal term may be extended by the authority at the written request of the licence holder, under the conditions laid down by the licence, provided that the authority is satisfied that any exploration so far carried out has been in accordance with the licence.
(3) If the licence does not include an appraisal term—
(a)
(a) the licence must specify a period as the “initial term” for the purpose of paragraph (4)(a); but
(b)
(b) that initial term may be extended under the conditions laid down by the licence.
(4) The licence expires—
(a)
(a) at the end of the appraisal term or the initial term, if no application for a storage permit is made before that date; or
(b)
(b) if an application for a storage permit is refused, when that refusal is notified to the licence holder.
Content of a licence
5. A licence must include the provisions in Schedule 1.
Storage permits
Applications for a storage permit
6.—(1) The licence holder may, under the conditions laid down by the licence, apply to the authority for a storage permit in respect of a place within the licensed area.
(2) Where the licence includes an appraisal term, the application may not be made unless any necessary exploration has been completed, and the terms and conditions of the licence have been complied with.
(3) An application must contain—
(a)
(a) the name and address of the proposed operator;
(b)
(b) evidence of the matters referred to in regulation 7(1);
(c)
(c) in relation to the CO2 that is to be contained within the storage site—
(i) the total quantity that is to be injected and stored;
(ii) a proposed date on which injection is to commence;
(iii) the prospective sources and transport methods;
(iv) the composition of the CO2 streams that are to be injected;
(v) the proposed injection rates and pressures; and
(vi) the proposed location of the injection facilities;
(d)
(d) a description of measures to be taken to prevent any significant irregularities;
(e)
(e) a proposed monitoring plan drawn up in accordance with Annex II to the Directive and that takes into account the obligations imposed on the operator under legislation implementing Article 14 of the ETS Directive;
(f)
(f) a proposed corrective measures plan;
(g)
(g) the proposed provisional post-closure plan drawn up in accordance with regulation 12(1);
(h)
(h) the information required to be provided in relation to the storage site under legislation implementing Article 5 of Council Directive 85/337/EEC8; and
(i)
(i) details of a financial security that will satisfy the requirements in paragraph 7(1) of Schedule 2, including proof that (if the storage permit is granted) such a security will be in force before the proposed date on which injection is to commence.
(4) The authority must forward to the European Commission—
(a)
(a) the permit application (within one month of receipt); and
(b)
(b) any other related material that the authority proposes to take into account when it seeks to make a decision on the award of a storage permit.
Grant of storage permits
7.—(1) Before granting a storage permit the authority must be satisfied that—
(a)
(a) the storage complex and surrounding area have been sufficiently characterised and assessed in accordance with the criteria set out in Annex I to the Directive;
(b)
(b) no part of the storage complex extends beyond the territories of the member States;
(c)
(c) under the proposed conditions of use of the storage site, there is no significant risk of leakage or of harm to the environment or human health; and
(d)
(d) the conditions in...
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