Explanatory note

These Regulations make provision for imposing a levy on licensees of offshore licences. The levy is payable to meet the expenditure of the Oil and Gas Authority (“the OGA”) in carrying out certain functions as set out in section 42(5) of the Infrastructure Act 2015 (c. 7).

The provisions of these Regulations refer to the Secretary of State rather than the OGA since the OGA is an executive agency of the Department of Energy and Climate Change and has no separate legal identity.

Regulation 3 makes provision for the application of the levy to licensees of offshore exploration licences and offshore production licences. The higher levy rate is payable in circumstances where a licensee will be producing petroleum or the relevant consent or approval has been given such that there is nothing preventing a licensee from producing petroleum in respect of that licence.

Regulation 4 provides for the licensees to be notified of the amount of the levy, the time by which it must be paid and the method of payment.

Regulation 5 provides for the payment of interest where the levy is paid late.

Regulation 6 makes provision for any unpaid levy together with interest to be recovered as a civil debt and makes provision for joint and several liability where the licensee is more than one person.

Regulation 7 requires the amount of the levy to be paid by licensees under regulation 3 of the Oil and Gas Authority (Levy) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1661) (“the 2015 Regulations”) to be adjusted if the total amount of the levy to be recovered under the 2015 Regulations exceeds the costs incurred by the OGA in carrying out certain functions during the charging period to which the 2015 Regulations relate.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument since a full impact assessment was produced for the 2015 Regulations. A copy of that impact assessment is available from the Department of Energy and Climate Change at 3 Whitehall Place, London SW1A 2AW and is available alongside the 2015 Regulations on www.legislation.gov.uk. There has been no change to the methodology in determining the amount of the levy or an extension of the regulatory powers and therefore the burden on business has not increased.