The Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Bill as introduced proposes amendments to the Crown Minerals Act 1991, the Conservation Act 1987, the Continental Shelf Act 1964, the Reserves Act 1977, and the Wildlife Act 1953, which would provide for

•the efficient allocation of rights to prospect, explore for, and mine Crown-owned minerals
•the management and regulation of the exercise of those rights
•a fair financial return to the Crown for its minerals.

The amendments we propose to the bill have the aims of encouraging the development of Crown-owned minerals so that they contribute more to New Zealand’s economic development; streamlining and simplifying the permitting regime where appropriate, making it better able to deal with future developments; and improving the co-ordination of regulatory agencies to contribute to stringent health and safety and environmental standards in exploration and production.

Our commentary covers the key amendments that we recommend to the bill. It does not cover the large number of minor or technical amendments proposed to improve workability, clarity, and legal efficacy.

Supplementary Order Paper 152

The Minister of Energy and Resources released Supplementary Order Paper 152 to the bill on 27 November 2012. The SOP proposes 15 amendments to the bill. The purpose of the amendments is to implement recommendations in the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry on the Pike River Coal Mine Tragedy that seek better integration of health and safety matters into the permit allocation and management provisions of the principal Act.

The Minister wrote to the committee on 28 November 2012 inviting us to consider the SOP alongside the bill. We have done so, and the majority of us are recommending that the substance of the amendments proposed on the SOP be incorporated into the bill.

Commencement

We recommend amending clause 2 so that all sections of the Act would commence on the same date, as it is no longer necessary to have multiple commencement dates.

Purpose statement

The principal Act does not include an explicit purpose statement. It is conventional for all new Acts of Parliament to contain a purpose statement, as they provide useful guidance about the intent of the Act.

In the light of recommendations from the Royal Commission of Inquiry on the Pike River Coal Mine Tragedy, we recommend amending clause 6 (inserting new section 1A) to include a reference to “good industry practice”. We recommend a related amendment to the definition of “good industry practice” in clause 8 (section 2) to include matters relating to health and safety legislation. This proposed change to the purpose statement reflects the central importance of health and safety in all activities under Crown minerals permits.

The majority of us recommend retaining the promotional element of the purpose statement, as New Zealand competes internationally for investment in exploration and mining of petroleum (oil and gas) and minerals, and this sends a strong signal to potential investors.

Interpretation

In clause 8 (section 2) the majority of us recommend introducing a definition of “underground gas storage facility”, and amending the definitions of “mining” and “mining operations” to include a reference to injection of gas into a reservoir for storage and extraction. Including underground gas storage activities in the framework of the Crown minerals regime would ensure that regulatory and royalty provisions were applied appropriately.

We recommend that clause 9 insert new section 2A to clarify the meaning of “appropriate Minister”. We recommend that clause 9 also amend new sections 2B and 2D, and insert new section 2C to clarify the way Tier 1 and Tier 2 permits are determined. The bill as introduced would result in all mineral mining permits being classified as Tier 1 permits for at least 5 years, even where it was clear that they would remain below the thresholds set in new Schedule 5. We recommend that the Minister be required to estimate exploration expenditure, annual royalties, or annual production as appropriate over a 5-year permit period to determine whether permits should be Tier 1 or Tier 2.

Minerals programmes

A minerals programme explains how the principal Act will be applied to the particular mineral to which the programme pertains. We recommend amending clause 15 (inserting new section 14) to make it clear that the programmes could set out how the Minister or the chief executive would exercise any specified powers or discretions provided by the Act. The amendment also allows for minerals programmes to provide information to help interested parties understand the legislation and how the Minister and the chief executive would interpret and apply specific provisions in the Act and the regulations.

We recommend, on the advice of the Regulations Review Committee, amending clause 15 to replace “policies” with “practices”. This would ensure that matters of principle and policy more appropriate for parliamentary enactment could not be included in deemed regulations.

We further recommend requiring in clause 15 (new section 14) that minerals programmes set out how the Crown would have regard to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi in accordance with section 4 of the principal Act. Section 4 requires all persons exercising functions and powers under the Act to have regard to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. Specifying how the Minister and chief executive should apply this provision in practice would provide clarity.

We believe minerals programmes are an appropriate vehicle for setting out detailed expectations regarding iwi engagement reports and consultation on permit decisions. This would allow more flexibility as to the kind of engagement, depending on the activity envisaged under each permit, and the preferences of the iwi and hapū concerned.

Permits

Minister’s discretion to grant permits

We recommend that clause 16 replace section 25 to state that the Minister is not obliged to grant a permit, or may impose permit conditions as he or she sees fit (subject to the overarching obligation to comply with the Act).

Health and safety

We believe these amendments would help to ensure that health and safety is considered throughout the permitting process, by securing collaboration among regulators and making compliance with health and safety legislation a requirement under the principal Act.

We recommend amending clause 18 (inserting new section 29A) to require that the Minister must be satisfied that an applicant for a permit is likely to comply with the work programme for the permit; and to require the Minister to seek the views of the Health and Safety Regulator (as newly defined in clause 8) before granting a Tier 1 permit for exploration or mining. We recommend a further amendment to ensure that an applicant’s record of compliance with its obligations in relation to reporting and the payment of fees and royalties is considered before a permit is issued.

In order to strengthen the health and safety provisions in the bill, we recommend amending clause 21 (which inserts new section 33(1)(a)) to make compliance with health and safety legislation a requirement for any permit holder, and therefore grounds for enforcement action under the principal Act.

We recommend an amendment to clause 21 to insert new section 33AA to ensure that permit holders may not commence activities under the principal Act before the Health and Safety Regulator had given any required approval or consent under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 or regulations made under that Act.

We also recommend amending clause 21 to insert new section 33AAB, to require the Health and Safety Regulator to notify the chief executive if a permit holder has been issued a prohibition notice or had enforcement action taken against them under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 or regulations made under that Act.

In clause 21 (inserting new section 33B), we recommend inserting new subsection (1A), to add a requirement that the chief executive invite relevant regulatory agencies to attend annual review meetings; and new subsection (3) to clarify that the permit holder would have to consent to anyone else attending such meetings.

Permit management

We believe that the recommended changes to permit management would result in fewer, clearer obligations and less non-compliance, as expectations would be clearer and the scope for dispute much reduced. A minerals programme would set out more detail about certain aspects of permit management, such as circumstances in which revocation would be contemplated.

Clause 15B (inserting new section 23) would allow the Minister to declare a moratorium on the granting of specified kinds of permits in respect of specified land to serve the purpose of the bill. We recommend clarifying this section so that rights to subsequent permits would not be affected by this provision. We believe that without such a limitation, the provision would risk undermining investors’ certainty about the stability of the regulatory regime.

We recommend deleting clause 19, which seeks to amend section 30(7) and 30(8). This would ensure that current permit holders and licence-holders continued to hold exclusive rights to undertake activities under a permit unless the permit provided otherwise, or the permit holder gave written consent to the granting of another permit. Deleting clause 19 would also prevent a minerals programme removing exclusivity retrospectively.

We recommend amending clause 22 (inserting new section 35A) to limit the duration of an appraisal extension. We recommend a maximum extension of 4 years, extendable for a further 4 years if the Minister considers this necessary to complete an appraisal work programme.

We recommend amending clause 22 (inserting new sections 35B and 35C) to remove the specification of the matters the Minister must take into account when requiring relinquishment of a prospecting or exploration permit, as we believe that such considerations are more appropriately set out in the minerals programme for the mineral to which the permit relates.

In clause 24 (section 36) we recommend an amendment to clarify that subsection (3) relates to extensions of the duration of the permit. We also recommend amending the deadline by which an application must be made in section 36(4B), while still retaining the Minister’s discretion to consider an application for a change to a permit where there are compelling reasons for the lateness of the application. We also recommend providing for existing permit holders to retain their rights to extensions of duration, as it was not the intention to remove such rights.

The majority of us recommend amending clause 26 (section 39) to extend the period for permit holders to appeal against revocation from 20 to 40 working days, which we believe to be a more reasonable time for permit holders to remove the grounds for revocation or make their case for the permit not to be revoked.

Clause 28 (new section 41) in the bill as introduced requires a permit participant to obtain the Minister’s consent to any agreement that gives effect to the transfer of a participant’s interest. We recommend amending this section so that the consent sought is to the transfer itself, rather than the making of the agreement.

The majority of us recommend amending clause 28 (new section 41A) so that any request by the Minister for information regarding a change of control of permit participants would have to be made within 3 months of receiving notification of the change of control and a statement of financial capability. The majority of us recommend also that revocation proceedings under section 41A be required to occur within 6 months of receiving the notice and statement of financial capability from the permit holder. We believe these changes are desirable to provide certainty for permit holders.

The majority of us recommend further amending clause 28 (new section 41B) to require the Minister’s consent to a dealing (as defined in new section 41B(4)) if it relates to a Tier 1 permit. We also recommend clarifying section 41B(4) so that dealings include any agreement related to the sale or proceeds of production.

We also recommend amending clause 28 (new section 41C) to remove the requirement for the Minister to re-consider the work programme of a permit as part of the process of consenting to a change of operator. The intent is for the Minister to consider the new operator’s capability to deliver the existing work programme and comply with other obligations, not to revisit the programme itself. We further recommend removing section 41D(4)(b) from clause 28, as it is inappropriate for the remaining obligations of a former permit holder to be subject to an agreement with a third party. We believe these changes would increase certainty for permit holders and investors.

In order to make “good industry practice” an integral part of the provisions for the approval of work programmes, we recommend inserting clause 28B (section 43) to replace the words “exploration or mining” with “industry”.

We recommend amending clause 40 (section 92) to make it clear that permits are personal property for the purposes of the Personal Property Securities Act 1999.

Auditing

For clarity, we recommend amending clause 44 (new section 99D) to explicitly include in this provision the calculation of mineral reserves by a permit holder undertaking mining activities. The majority of us also recommend providing in this section that a permit holder may be required to pay auditor’s costs only if the auditor finds material failures in calculation, payment, or the keeping or providing of records. The majority of us believe it is unreasonable to expect a permit holder to bear these costs otherwise.

Transitional provisions

We recommend inserting Schedule 1A to insert new Schedule 1 into the principal Act. New Schedule 1 sets out the transitional provisions for amendments made to the principal Act by this bill that were previously in clause 51. It also sets out the transitional provisions relating to existing privileges. Part 2 of the principal Act, which currently sets out transitional provisions for existing privileges, would be repealed. Encompassing transitional provisions in a schedule is in keeping with new drafting practice guidelines, and ensures that such provisions are clearly visible in enacted legislation.

We recommend that clause 2 of Schedule 1 allow an existing permit holder until 5 December 2013 to notify the identity of the permit operator. We believe this would allow existing operations to develop workable commercial arrangements.

The majority of us recommend amending clause 7 to provide for an existing petroleum exploration permit to be extended to the new maximum duration of 15 years (plus any further extension under an appraisal extension), where this is necessary to complete exploration activities.

The majority of us recommend that clause 13 be amended so that for existing privileges the operator would not need to be a holder of the existing privilege. We believe that this would preserve the policy that all operations have a designated operator, while avoiding potential adverse impacts on some existing operations resulting from the need for the operator to be a permit participant.

We recommend amending clause 14 so that activities under existing privileges that required approval or consent from the Health and Safety Regulator could not be carried out until that approval had been given.

The majority of us recommend inserting clause 21 so that previous notices of land reserved for possible allocation by public tender could be treated as if they were made under new section 23.

Unit development schemes

We recommend amending clause 28D (section 46) to allow the Minister to suspend or reduce production from one or more wells during the preparation of a unit development scheme, following consultation, to avoid wasting the resource.

The existence of a power to suspend or reduce production from a field would provide a strong incentive for the parties to co-operate to draw up a unit development scheme as quickly as possible. The use of the unit development provisions has been rare to date, but they may become much more important as development proliferates, particularly as technological and economic change encourages deeper plays that cross into existing permits for shallower fields.

We recommend also amending this section to provide for costs incurred by the Minister in determining a unit development scheme to be recovered from the permit holders.

Access to land

The majority of us recommend amending clause 31 (section 61) to provide for the land-holding Minister to remain solely responsible for land access decisions on activities on Crown land, with the exception that the Minister of Energy and Resources would be jointly responsible with the land-holding Minister for Tier 1 exploration and mining applications. The majority of us believe this would ensure that the Minister of Energy and Resource’s involvement was confined to projects with the potential to generate a significant economic return or that are high risk. The majority of us recommend also providing for the Minister of Energy and Resources to be a joint decision-maker for significant variations to major access arrangements.

The majority of us recommend a further amendment to this section providing for direct net economic benefits to be taken into account when deciding on access arrangements for mining on conservation land. This evaluation would account for the direct effects of mining on other activities such as tourism.

Clause 32 (new section 61C) relates to public notification of applications for access arrangements involving significant mining activities where the Minister of Conservation has responsibility for the land in question. We recommend amending this section to provide for the Minister of Conservation to be responsible for determining whether the proposed mining activities are “significant” under section 61C, and therefore whether the application for access should be publicly notified. We expect that further detail would be provided on how the Minister of Conservation would determine significance case by case, probably in the Department of Conservation’s Standard Operating Procedures.

For clarity, we also recommend limiting “any other matters” in section 61C(2)(d) to matters relevant to achieving the purpose of the Act.

We also recommend inserting section 61C(3)(c) to require the Minister (or Ministers, if the decision is to be made with the Minister of Energy and Resources) to have regard to the Director-General of Conservation’s recommendation and summary of objections and comments received on the application.

Registers and records

We recommend amending clause 38 (section 90) to remove any unintended implication that information supplied under this section cannot be used by the Minister or the chief executive after the information is available to others. We also recommend deleting the reference to a “hard copy” document to allow the regulations to prescribe that documents can be provided electronically.

We recommend that this section apply only to partial surrender and relinquishment of permits, so that permit holders would not need to re-submit reports previously provided.

We also recommend clarifying that in the event that a permit was surrendered in the process of amalgamating permits, information relating to land included in the new area of the retained (amalgamated) permit would not be released.

Further, we recommend extending the time when data collected by a petroleum company under a petroleum prospecting permit must be made publicly available until the later of 5 years or the closure of competitive allocation of exploration permits over the area, with a backstop requirement of 15 years in case a public tender is not held. These amendments would improve incentives to undertake prospecting, especially in remote areas.

In clause 38 (new section 90A) we recommend including a reference to information provided under sections 61, 61B, 61C, 90, and 99E, to ensure that information disclosed under these sections would not be unduly shared.

We recommend that clause 38 insert new section 90G to allow regulatory agencies to provide information for the purposes of the Act.

Miscellaneous amendments

Ability of enforcement officers to obtain warrants

We recommend amending clause 44 (new section 99C) so that enforcement officers would retain the ability to apply for search warrants, which this section as introduced would have unintentionally removed.

Timeframe for objections

We recommend amending clause 44 to extend the time allowed by new section 99J for objections to be made by permit holders to royalty assessments by the chief executive and for consideration of objections, from 20 to 40 working days.

Appeals process

We recommend amending clause 44 to provide more detail in new section 99K about the appeal process for assessments of royalty returns or permit-holder liability, as we believe the provisions as drafted are insufficient. We recommend requiring appeals to be made within 20 days of the determination of the chief executive, allowing the District Court to determine the royalty assessment, and allowing the chief executive or the permit holder to appeal the District Court’s decision to the High Court within 20 working days if the amount of the royalty is $2,000 or more, or if the appeal relates to a point of law.

We also recommend amending clause 44 to insert new section 99L, which sets out the status of a default or amended assessment during the objection and appeal process, and when money must be paid as a result of decisions made during that process.

Penalties

We recommend amending clause 46 (section 101) to increase the amounts of penalties for offences against the Act. We believe that the increase in penalties proposed in the bill as introduced is too low to effectively discourage non-compliance.

Incorporation of material in regulations

We recommend that clause 49 insert new sections 105B and 105C to allow, and set out the process for, incorporating material (for example, a classification system) by reference into regulations. These new sections mirror equivalent provisions in the Legislation Act 2012 (with the exception of any incorporated financial reporting standards made under the Financial Reporting Act 1993. The latest version of these standards will apply, and their incorporation does not require consultation, as public consultation on the standards has already occurred under the Financial Reporting Act).

Amendments to other Acts

Conservation Act 1987

We recommend inserting clause 56A to amend section 8 of the Conservation Act 1987 to remove the ability of the Minister of Conservation to create nature and scientific reserves by Gazette notice. This is consistent with changes the bill would make in Part 4 to the Reserves Act 1977, so that nature and scientific reserves would instead be created by the Governor-General by Order in Council. Classification decisions by Order in Council would allow consideration by Cabinet of the mineral potential of areas before they were classified and automatically included in Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act. The Minister of Conservation would continue to be responsible for the classification of areas of public conservation land that would not result in automatic inclusion in Schedule 4.

Continental Shelf Act 1964

Clause 60 would amend section 5 of the Continental Shelf Act 1964 to remove the ability to apply for a licence under the Continental Shelf Act. We recommend inserting a new subsection (10) in this section to allow the holder of a current prospecting licence to apply for a subsequent exploration or mining permit under the Crown Minerals Act, to bring such licence holders under the new regime.

Reserves Act 1977

We recommend amending clause 68, which would amend section 24 of the Reserves Act 1977, so that changes of classification or revocation of nature and scientific reserves would be made by the Governor-General by Order in Council rather than by the Minister of Conservation by Gazette notice.

This is consistent with changes to the initial classification of reserves in clauses 66 and 67 (section 16 and new section 16A of the Reserves Act) to allow consideration by Cabinet of the mineral potential of areas before they are classified and automatically included in Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act.

New Zealand Labour Party minority view

Labour supports aspects of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Bill including

•the move to enshrine Schedule 4 of the Crown Minerals Act 1991 and automatic inclusion of certain areas into Schedule 4
•the introduction of a two-tier system for permit management with all complex, higher-return petroleum and minerals operations being classified as Tier 1 and therefore subject to a more stringent permitting process and a high-level pre-vetting of applicants
•improved coordination between the Crown minerals permitting regime and health and safety and environmental regulatory functions for Tier 1 activities (although we do not think this should be necessarily limited to Tier 1 applications)
•integrating health and safety into the permitting process to ensure consistency and collaboration amongst regulators to ensure health and safety is considered right throughout the permitting process as a general condition of permits
•simplifying the process for revocation of permits
•increasing the penalties for offences under the Act.
We also agree with the Government that bipartisan support for this legislation would provide certainty for all parties engaging in the permitting process. To this end we welcomed the approach of the former Minister of Energy and Resources to work with the Labour party to try and find a compromise on areas of disagreement, and supported the bill at first reading as a gesture of good faith that outstanding issues would be addressed at select committee. Unfortunately, despite robust debate at committee we were unable to get agreement from Government members in the key areas outlined below, and as such will not be supporting the bill any further.

Minister of Conservation to share decision-making powers with Minister of Energy and Resources on access for mining on the conservation estate

While the Crown Minerals Act governs access to minerals, access to the land which is to be mined requires negotiation between the mining company and the landowner to obtain their consent (excluding oil and gas exploration). This is usually a private landowner, except in the case of applications for mining on land within the conservation estate. In this instance the “landowner” is the Minister of Conservation on behalf of all New Zealanders.

This bill removes the sole decision-making power from the Minister of Conservation and introduces a shared decision-making role with the Minister of Energy and Resources. This is a fundamental undermining of the role and powers of the Minister of Conservation and represents a significant shift in the guardianship and protection of Crown conservation land. It cuts right across the deliberate separation of powers between the Minister of Energy and Resources who, under this bill, is responsible for “promoting” mining activities and the Minister of Conservation, who grants access to the conservation estate. We agree with the concerns raised by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment who stated, “The Minister of Conservation will remain accountable for the conservation estate but is not in control.”

We are concerned that far from streamlining processes as the bill claims to do, it will result in costly and time-consuming legal challenges by judicial review, as the Minister of Energy and Resources’ ability to remain objective will be difficult given the role the Minister is currently playing in actively promoting an expansion of petroleum and minerals exploration in New Zealand. We believe this leaves the Crown extremely vulnerable to challenges on the basis of pre-determination of decision.

We are also concerned that there is no mechanism in the bill to deal with a situation where the two Ministers cannot come to an agreement.

Labour believes the Minister of Conservation should have sole decision-making power on access for mining on the conservation estate.

Introduction of an “economic benefit” test

All commercial activities on the Department of Conservation estate require the granting of a concession, currently from the Minister of Conservation. Under the Conservation Act 1987 a concession can only be granted if the proposed activity is not “contrary to the provisions of this Act or the purposes for which the land concerned is held”.

The bill introduces a new “economic benefit” test when determining whether or not to grant an access arrangement on conservation land under the Crown Minerals Act. We do not agree with this change, as it compromises the management of the conservation estate by suggesting that even if an activity is not compatible with the objectives and purposes of the Conservation Act, the activity could still go ahead.

This new test also only applies to mining activities, and we question why one sector is being given such a privileged status over other commercial activities that occur on the conservation estate such as tourism ventures, which must pass the test set out above in the Conservation Act. When considering applications for access under the Crown Minerals Act the Minister only need “have regard” for a number of matters when coming to a decision. This is a far weaker test and we have yet to be given any rationale as to why this should be the case.

While the bill has been amended so that only the direct net economic benefits be taken into account, we do not believe this addresses the underlying issue, which is that while it is relatively simple to quantify the economic value of a mineral resource, it is extremely difficult to quantify the concurrent loss of value or environmental impact of the activity on conservation land. As such, we believe the test should be removed.

Purpose clause

The bill introduces a new purpose clause for the Crown Minerals Act which states: “The purpose of this Act is to promote prospecting for, exploration for, and mining of Crown owned minerals for the benefit of New Zealand...”.

We do not believe the purpose should be to “promote”, but rather to “manage”, “facilitate”, or “regulate” mining activities. Given the new powers being granted to the Minister of Energy and Resources to allow access for mining activities on conservation land, it is particularly important that the purpose of this Act not create a direct conflict of interest for the Minister by legislating his or her role as one of “promoting” mining activities with no regard to the effect on the conservation estate.

Furthermore we believe the purpose clause should contain references to health and safety, sustainability, and environmental principles.

Definition of “significant” for access applications to be notified

We remain concerned that where an access application is deemed to be “significant” by the Minister of Conservation and therefore notified under the Conservation Act , the definition of “significant” remains unclear.

Green Party minority view

The Green Party is unable to support this bill. We do see merit in the Supplementary Order Paper on health and safety and support all efforts to protect workers, but otherwise we have major concerns about a number of fundamental issues.

Purpose

The purpose of the bill is to promote and facilitate one industry at the expense of others. The purpose lacks balance and leadership, and although full of minor detail which appears innocuous, it has some embedded drivers which will weaken a range of other core legislation, such as the Conservation Act. The stated focus of the purpose clauses is “efficient allocation” and a fair return to the Crown, but the overall purpose is to fast-track minerals and petroleum development within a weak context of other values and rights. This is completely contrary to the widely expressed public opposition to mining on conservation land, which forced a Government back-down in 2010. The issue of royalties and a fair return to the Crown is not addressed in the bill, but will be dealt with via regulations. The unresolved question of tangata whenua ownership of minerals is not addressed.

The role of the Minister

Consistent with the purpose clause and equally unacceptable are the sections of the bill relating to the role of the Minister of Energy and Resources as a facilitator rather than a regulator of the industry. This role definition is made even more problematic by the changes to the decision-making process.

Joint decision-making

Ministerial joint decision-making is a major political shift away from the power of the Minister of Conservation over conservation land to a privileging of the economic imperative. As the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment has said, “It cuts across the fundamental separation of functions and powers whereby the Minister of Energy and Resources grants permits for minerals and the Minister of Conservation grants access to the conservation estate. The Minister of Conservation will remain accountable for the conservation estate but not in control. His or her core role as guardian of the conservation estate will be undermined”.

The suggested compromise that joint decision-making will only apply to “significant” applications—i.e. with the potential to generate a significant economic return, and are high risk— completely fails to address the wide public concern about the conservation estate being open to mining. The Minister of Conservation will be weakened on these core issues of public concern.

In terms of the provision for public notification where the Conservation Minister deems a proposal significant, this is inadequate, as all mining activity on conservation land should be publicly notified.

Orders in Council

The classification of conservation land and waters will now be in the hands of Cabinet instead of the Minister of Conservation. Cabinet will have the power to remove land from national parks, reserves, wildlife sanctuaries, and scientific reserves. This gives unprecedented control to the higher ranks of Cabinet over the Minister of Conservation.

Although Schedule 4 land is ostensibly protected, the additions to this schedule will have to be via Order in Council. Again, this gives Cabinet control over the conservation estate and potentially blocks or limits critical additions to Schedule 4.

Net economic benefit

Clause 31(6) proposes to add economic benefit to matters requiring consideration when making decisions on access agreements to Crown lands for mining. The committee sought more clarity around this phrase, which has been explained as relating to direct costs.

The Green Party remains concerned that without full cost-benefit accounting principles and a recognition of the long-term economic cost of a mining activity, this clause will facilitate mining at the expense of conservation values. This quantification of cultural, community, and environmental values is currently limited and the net economic benefit clause can be used to privilege the mining industry.

Length of permits

The Green Party opposes any increase in the length of exploration permits as they are granted often with non-public input and no accountability to the local community. And we don’t see any justification in the bill for lengthening the permits except for the convenience of the mining companies. These clauses also protect existing rights of some older prospecting licences for extended periods.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi issues

Apart from the generic Te Tiriti o Waitangi clause in the existing Act, the bill offers little to tangata whenua in terms of improved statutory engagement. It invents a new process of iwi engagement reporting which is toothless and lacks any robust requirements. A number of iwi groups pointed this out to the committee but no meaningful changes have eventuated. Annual reporting to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment of alleged robust consultation with iwi and hapū with no proper definition, rules, or mandatory framework is tokenism. Verbal assurances that the miners are keen to do better have no legal status and no credibility.

Two-tier system

The Green Party has no disagreement with the distinction in the bill between hobby miners and the corporate industry, providing the workers in both tiers have the same level of protection. We are concerned that Tier 2 workers will not be guaranteed the same level of health and safety.

Conclusion

There are a number of other small issues in the bill which privilege the industry and reinforce the approach in the purpose that the minerals and petroleum industry must be supported, encouraged, and given access to our conservation and marine environments.

Many submitters raised issues about the ministerial powers and conservation designations, which showed that public objection to miners having access to the conservation estate is very much a public concern and that the Government attempt to mine national parks, etc., has not been forgotten. These concerns have not been recognised or incorporated during the committee process.

Therefore the Green Party is adamant that the bill is fundamentally problematic and inappropriate as a legal instrument. Facilitating and privileging mining access to the conservation estate and ignoring Te Tiriti o Waitangi issues and public opinion is not acceptable in the 21st century.

Appendix

Committee process

The Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Bill was referred to the committee on 26 September 2012. The closing date for submissions was 25 January 2013. We received and considered 551 submissions from interested groups and individuals. We heard 44 submissions.

We received advice from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, and the Department of Conservation. The Regulations Review Committee reported to the committee on the powers contained in clause 15.

Committee membership

Jonathan Young (Chairperson)

Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi

Dr David Clark

Hon Clayton Cosgrove

Clare Curran

Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga

Mojo Mathers

Mark Mitchell

Dr Jian Yang

Catherine Delahunty replaced Mojo Mathers for this item of business. Moana Mackey and Hon Ruth Dyson replaced Labour Party members throughout consideration of the bill.

Key to symbols used

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Hon Simon Bridges

Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Bill

Government Bill

70—2

1 Title

2 Commencement

Part 1
Amendments to Crown Minerals Act 1991

3 Principal Act

4 Long Title repealed

5 Section 1 amended (Short Title and commencement)

6 New sections 1A and 1B inserted

1A Purpose

1B Provisions affecting application of Act

7 Part 1 heading replaced

8 Section 2 amended (Interpretation)

9 New sections 2A to 2D inserted

2A Meaning of appropriate Minister

2B Meaning of Tier 1 permit and Tier 2 permit

2C Determination of permit tier status

2D Consequences of change in status of permit

10 Section 5 replaced (Functions of Minister of Energy)

5 Functions of Minister

11 Section 6 amended (Delegation of functions by Minister of Energy)

12 Section 7 replaced (Appointment of enforcement officers)

7 Functions of chief executive

13 Section 8 amended (Restrictions on prospecting or exploring for, or mining, Crown owned minerals)

13A Section 12 and cross-heading repealed

14 New Part 1A heading inserted

15 Sections 13 to 22 and cross-heading replaced

15A New Part 1B heading inserted

15B Section 23 replaced (Application for permits)

23 Declaration that permits not to be issued or extended for specified land for specified period

23A Purpose of permits

23B Application for permits

16 Section 25 replaced (Grant of permit)

25 Grant of permit

17 Section 27 replaced (Provisions relating to granting of permit)

~~27 General provisions about granting of permits~~

27A Permit holder must have permit operator

18 New section 29A and cross-heading inserted

Process for dealing with applications for permits

29A Process for considering application

~~29B Granting of permit not indicative of any matter relating to health, safety, and environmental legislation~~

~~19 Section 30 amended (Rights to prospect, explore, mine)~~

20 Section 32 amended (Right of permit holder to subsequent permits)

21 Section 33 replaced (Permit holder to comply with permit and this Act)

33 Permit holder responsibilities

33AA Exercise of permit conditional on clearance from Health and Safety Regulator

33AAB Health and Safety Regulator to notify chief executive of breaches of legislation

33A Iwi engagement reports

33B Annual review meeting for holders of Tier 1 permits

22 Section 35 replaced (Duration of permit)

35 Duration of permit

35A Appraisal extension of exploration permits

35B Conditions imposing relinquishment obligation: prospecting permits

35C Conditions imposing relinquishment obligation: exploration permits

23 New cross-heading above section 36 inserted

24 Section 36 amended (Change to permit)

25 Sections 37 and 38 replaced

37 Process for Minister's proposal to change work programme for petroleum mining permit

38 Determination by independent expert

26 Section 39 amended (Revocation of permit)

27 Section 40 amended (Surrender of permit)

28 Section 41 replaced (Transfers and other dealings with permits)

41 Transfer of interest in permit

41A Change of control of permit participants

41B Dealings

41C Change of permit operator

41D General provisions relating to transfers, dealings, and changes of permit operator

28A Section 42A amended (Authorisation of geophysical surveys on adjacent land)

28B Section 43 amended (Work programmes to be approved by Minister)

28C Section 44 amended (Duty of Minister withholding approval of work programme)

28D Section 46 amended (Unit development)

29 Section 53 amended (Access to land for petroleum)

30 Section 54 amended (Access to land for minerals other than petroleum)

31 Section 61 amended (Access arrangements in respect of Crown land and land in common marine and coastal area)

32 New section 61C inserted (Public notification of certain access arrangements)

61C Public notification of certain access arrangements

~~33 Cross-heading above section 90 replaced~~

~~34 Section 90 amended (Reports to Secretary)~~

~~35 New section 90AA inserted (Disclosure of information)~~

~~90AA Disclosure of information~~

~~36 Section 90A replaced (Disclosure of petroleum reserves and production information to Secretary and publication by Secretary)~~

~~90A Disclosure and publication of mineral reserves and mineral production information~~

~~37 New sections 90B and 90C inserted~~

~~90B Provisions relating to speculative prospectors~~

~~90C Speculative prospecting information provided by holder of exploration or mining permit for petroleum~~

~~38 New sections 90D and 90E inserted~~

~~90D Providing information to regulatory agencies~~

~~90E Conditions that may be imposed on providing information or documents under section 90D~~

38 Sections 90 and 90A and cross-heading to section 90 replaced

39 Section 91 amended (Secretary to keep registers)

40 Section 92 amended (Permits are not real or personal property)

41 New section 92A inserted (Effect of liquidation or loss of registration of company)

92A Effect of liquidation or loss of registration of company

41A Section 95 amended (Address for service)

41B Section 97 amended

42 Section 98 amended (Gold fossicking areas)

43 New section 98A inserted (Gold fossicking areas (other land))

98A Gold fossicking areas (other land)

44 New sections 99A to 99L and cross-headings inserted

45 Section 100 amended (Offences)

46 Section 101 amended (Penalties)

47 Section 104 amended (Recovery of fees and other money)

48 Section 105 amended (Regulations)

49 New sections 105A to 105C inserted

105A Regulations relating to royalties

105B Regulations may incorporate material by reference

105C Requirement to consult on proposal to incorporate material by reference

Repeals, consequential amendments, and transitional provisions

50 Part 2 replaced

Part 2
Savings and transitional provisions

106 Savings and transitional provisions

~~51 New sections 115A to 115I and cross-heading inserted~~

51 New Schedule 1 inserted

52 Schedule 4 replaced

53 New Schedule 5 inserted

53A Amendments to principal Act relating to Legislation Act 2012

54 Consequential and minor amendments to principal Act

54A Consequential amendments to other Acts

Part 2
Amendments to Conservation Act 1987

55 Principal Act

~~56 Section 2 amended (Interpretation)~~

56 Section 2 amended (Interpretation)

56A Section 8 amended (Conservation area may become reserve, national park, etc)

57 New sections 18AA and 18AB inserted

18AA Governor-General may confer additional protection or preservation requirements

18AB Governor-General may declare that wetland be notified to Ramsar Secretariat

58 Section 18 amended (Minister may confer additional specific protection or preservation requirements)

Part 3
Amendments to Continental Shelf Act 1964

59 Principal Act

59A Section 4 amended (Mining for petroleum on continental shelf)

60 Section 5 amended (Mining for minerals on continental shelf)

61 New section 5AA inserted (Mining for minerals on continental shelf on or after commencement of this section)

5AA Mining for minerals on continental shelf on or after commencement of this section

62 Section 5A amended (Payments and contributions with respect to exploitation of continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles)

Part 4
Amendments to Reserves Act 1977

63 Principal Act

64 Section 5 amended (Restricting application of this Act)

65 Section 6 amended (Powers of Minister in cases of doubt)

66 Section 16 amended (Classification of reserves)

~~67 New section 16A inserted (Classification of reserves on and from commencement of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012)~~

~~16A Classification of reserves on and from commencement of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012~~

67 New section 16A inserted (Application of section 16 to nature and scientific reserves after commencement of Part 1 of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012)

16A Application of section 16 to nature and scientific reserves after commencement of Part 1 of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012

68 Section 24 amended (Change of classification or purpose or revocation of reserves)

69 Section 47 amended (Wilderness areas)

Part 5
Amendments to Wildlife Act 1953

70 Principal Act

71 Section 9 amended (Wildlife sanctuaries)

72 Section 10 amended (All wildlife in sanctuaries absolutely protected)

73 Section 64 amended (Offences in relation to wildlife sanctuaries)

74 Section 67F amended (Penalties for other offences)

Schedule 1A
New Schedule 1 inserted

Schedule 1
Schedule 4 replaced

Schedule 2
New Schedule 5 inserted

Schedule 3
Consequential and minor amendments to principal Act

Schedule 4
Consequential amendments to other Acts

The Parliament of New Zealand enacts as follows:

1 Title

This Act is the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012.

2 Commencement

~~(1) Sections 34(9), 37, 48, and 49 come into force on the day after the date on which this Act receives the Royal assent.~~

(2) The rest of this Act comes into force on a date appointed by the Governor-General by Order in Council; and 1 or more Orders in Council may be made bringing different provisions into force on different dates.
(2) This Act comes into force on the earlier of the following:
- (a) the date appointed by the Governor-General by Order in Council:
- (b) the day that is 2 years after the date on which the Act receives the Royal assent.
~~(3) Any provision that has not earlier been brought into force comes into force on the day that is 2 years after the date on which this Act receives the Royal assent.~~

Part 1
Amendments to Crown Minerals Act 1991

3 Principal Act

This Part amends the Crown Minerals Act 1991 (the principal Act).

4 Long Title repealed

Repeal the Long Title.

5 Section 1 amended (Short Title and commencement)

In the heading to section 1, delete “Short”.

6 New section 1A inserted (Purpose) sections 1A and 1B inserted

After section 1, insert:
“1A Purpose

~~“The purpose of this Act is to promote prospecting for, exploration for, and mining of Crown owned minerals for the benefit of New Zealand, by providing for—~~

~~“(a) the efficient allocation of rights to prospect for, explore for, and mine Crown owned minerals; and~~

~~“(b) the effective management and regulation of the exercise of those rights; and~~

~~“(c) a fair financial return to the Crown for its minerals.~~

“(1) The purpose of this Act is to promote prospecting for, exploration for, and mining of Crown owned minerals for the benefit of New Zealand.

“(2) To this end, this Act provides for—

“(a) the efficient allocation of rights to prospect for, explore for, and mine Crown owned minerals; and

“(b) the effective management and regulation of the exercise of those rights; and

“(c) the carrying out, in accordance with good industry practice, of activities in respect of those rights; and

“(d) a fair financial return to the Crown for its minerals.
“1B Provisions affecting application of Act

Schedule 1 contains savings and transitional provisions that affect other provisions of this Act (see section 106).”

7 Part 1 heading replaced

Replace the Part 1 heading with:

“Part 1
“Preliminary provisions”.

8 Section 2 amended (Interpretation)

(1) In section 2(1), insert in their appropriate alphabetical order:
“appropriate Minister has the meaning given by section 2A

“chief executive means the chief executive of the department that, with the authority of the Prime Minister, is responsible for the administration of this Act

“consent authority has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991
“existing privilege means any of the following that were in force at the close of 30 September 1991:

“(a) any mining privilege granted under Part 4 of the Mining Act 1971:

“(b) any mining privilege or licence referred to in section 136(b) and (c) of the Mining Act 1971:

“(c) any coal mining right or other right, lease, sublease, tenancy, licence, or easement granted under the Coal Mines Act 1979:

“(d) any prospecting licence or mining licence granted under Part 1 of the Petroleum Act 1937 or authorisation granted under Part 2 of that Act:

“(e) any authorisation given, agreement entered into, or grant of rights under the Iron and Steel Industry Act 1959, and any existing rights referred to in section 5 of that Act
“good industry practice, in relation to an activity, means acting in a manner that is technically competent and at a level of diligence and prudence reasonably and ordinarily exercised by experienced operators engaged in a similar activity and under similar circumstances, but (for the purposes of this Act) does not include ~~matters or activities~~ any aspect of the activity regulated under ~~health, safety, or~~ environmental legislation

“Health and Safety Regulator means the department that, with the authority of the Prime Minister, is responsible for the administration of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992

“internal waters has the meaning given by section 4 of the Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977

“local authority means a regional council or a territorial authority (as those terms are defined in section 5(1) of the Local Government Act 2002)

“offshore means anywhere that is the seaward side of the mean high-water mark

“participating interest means an undivided share of a permit that is expressed as a percentage recorded on the permit ~~register~~

“permit operator means the person described in section 27A

“permit participant means a person who holds a participating interest in a permit

“permit year means the period of 12 months from the commencement of a permit, or any successive period of 12 months from an anniversary of the commencement of a permit

~~“Ramsar Administrative Authority has the same meaning as in section 2(1) of the Conservation Act 1987~~
“regulatory agency means—

“(a) the Environmental Protection Authority established by section 7 of the Environmental Protection Authority Act 2011:

“(b) a consent authority ~~(within the meaning of section 2(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991)~~:

“(c) Maritime New Zealand and the Director of Maritime New Zealand:

~~“(d) the department that, with the authority of the Prime Minister, is responsible for the administration of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992~~

“(d) the Health and Safety Regulator

“(e) the Department of Conservation
“royalties means money payable to the Crown under section 33(1)(c) in accordance with—

“(a) section 34(b); or

“(b) regulations made under section 105A
“special purpose mining activity means an activity carried out ~~for demonstrating~~ to demonstrate historical mining methods
“specified Act means the—

“(a) Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992:

“(b) Maritime Transport Act 1994:

“(c) Resource Management Act 1991:

“(d) Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012
“speculative prospector has the meaning given by section 90C(7)

“Tier 1 permit has the meaning given by section 2A 2B(1)

“Tier 2 permit has the meaning given by section 2A 2B(2)

“underground gas storage facility means a natural reservoir into which petroleum, mined from land outside the area of the permit in which the reservoir is situated, has been injected in a gaseous state for subsequent extraction

“work programme means a programme of work to be undertaken by a permit holder in relation to the holder's permit”.
(2) In section 2(1), definition of coal, replace “peat, and oil shale” with “and peat”.

(3) In section 2(1), definition of draft minerals programme, replace “section 14” with “section 15”.

(4) In section 2(1), replace the definition of enforcement officer with:

“enforcement officer means any person appointed under section 99A”.

(4A) In section 2(1), definition of gold fossicking area, replace “declared under section 98” with “designated under section 98 or 98A”.

~~(5) In section 2(1), definition of minerals programme, replace “Governor-General under section 18” with “Minister under section 20”.~~

(5) In section 2(1), definition of minerals programme, replace “section 18” with “section 19”.
(6) In section 2(1), definition of minimum impact activity, after paragraph (b), insert:
- “(ba) taking ~~small-scale~~ small samples offshore by low-impact mechanical methods:”.
(6A) In section 2(1), replace the definition of mining with:
“mining—

“(a) means to take, win, or extract, by whatever means,—

“(i) a mineral existing in its natural state in land; or

“(ii) a chemical substance from a mineral existing in its natural state in land; and

“(b) includes the extraction of petroleum from an underground gas storage facility; but

“(c) does not include prospecting or exploration for a mineral or chemical substance referred to in paragraph (a)”.
(6B) In section 2(1), replace the definition of mining operations with:
“mining operations—

“(a) means operations in connection with mining, exploring, or prospecting for any Crown owned mineral; and

“(b) includes, when carried out at or near the site where the mining, exploration, or prospecting is undertaken,—

“(i) the extraction, transport, treatment, processing, and separation of any mineral or chemical substance from the mineral; and

“(ii) the construction, maintenance, and operation of any works, structures, and other land improvements, and of any related machinery and equipment connected with the operations; and

“(iii) the removal of overburden by mechanical or other means, and the stacking, deposit, storage, and treatment of any substance considered to contain any mineral; and

“(iv) the deposit or discharge of any mineral, material, debris, tailings, refuse, or wastewater produced from or consequent on the operations; and

“(v) the doing of all lawful acts incidental or conducive to the operations; and

“(c) includes any activities relating to the injection and extraction of petroleum from an underground gas storage facility”.
(7) In section 2(1), replace the definition of Minister with:

“Minister means the Minister of the Crown who, under the authority of a warrant or with the authority of the Prime Minister, is responsible for the administration of this Act”.

(8) In section 2(1), definition of occupier, paragraph (b), ~~delete~~ replace “as defined in section 106 (other than an exploration licence or prospector's right granted under the Mining Act 1971, or an” with “(other than an”.

(9) In section 2(1), replace the definition of permit holder with:

“permit holder means the person who is the sole permit participant, or all of the permit participants, as the case may be”.

(10) In section 2(1), definition of petroleum, delete “in the same or an adjacent area”.
(11) In section 2(1), replace the definition of prospecting with:
“prospecting—

“(a) means any activity undertaken for the purpose of identifying land likely to contain mineral deposits or occurrences; and

“(b) includes the following activities:

“(i) geological, geochemical, and geophysical surveying:

“(ii) aerial surveying:

“(iii) taking samples by hand or hand held methods:

“(iv) taking ~~small-scale~~ small samples offshore by low-impact mechanical methods”.
(12) In section 2(1), replace the definition of relevant minerals programme with:
“relevant minerals programme,—

“(a) in relation to a permit ~~for any mineral~~ that had effect immediately before the commencement of section 13 of this Act (as enacted by section 15 of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012), means the minerals programme that for the time being applies under ~~section 115B~~ clause 3 of Schedule 1:

“(b) in relation to a permit granted ~~for any mineral~~ on or after the commencement of section 13 of this Act (as so enacted), means the minerals programme that for the time being applies to that mineral under Part 1A”.
(13) In section 2(1), repeal the definition of Secretary.

~~(14) In section 2(2)(a), replace “and” with “or”.~~

(15) Repeal section ~~2(3)~~ 2(2) and (3).

9 New sections 2A and 2B to 2D inserted

After section 2, insert:
“2A Meaning of appropriate Minister

“(1) In this Act, appropriate Minister, in relation to Crown land or land in the common marine and coastal area, means—

“(a) the Minister charged with the administration of the land; or

“(b) if the land is part of the common marine and coastal area, the Minister described in paragraph (a) and the Minister of Conservation (if he or she is not the Minister described in that paragraph); or

“(c) if neither of paragraphs (a) and (b) applies, the Minister of Lands.

“(2) However, if after subsection (1) is applied there is uncertainty as to who is the appropriate Minister, the appropriate Minister is the Minister designated by the Governor-General by Order in Council.
“2A2B Meaning of Tier 1 permit and Tier 2 permit

“(1) In this Act, Tier 1 permit means the following permits:

“(a) a prospecting, exploration, or mining permit that relates to petroleum:

“(b) a prospecting permit that relates to a mineral listed in the first column of Schedule 5, unless the permit relates to prospecting for alluvial gold:

“(c) an exploration permit that relates to a mineral listed in the first column of Schedule 5, unless the expected total work programme expenditure in relation to the permit is less than the amount specified for the mineral in the second column of that schedule:

“(c) an exploration permit that relates to a mineral listed in the first column of Schedule 5, unless the expected total work programme expenditure in relation to the permit for the final 5 permit years of its life, or for the entire duration of its life if the permit is for less than 5 permit years, is, in the Minister's estimation, less than the amount specified for the mineral in the second column of that schedule:

“(d) a mining permit that relates to a mineral listed in the first column of Schedule 5, unless, in the fifth permit year, or any subsequent permit year, the annual royalty or annual production in relation to the permit over the previous year is less than the threshold specified in the third or fourth column of that schedule:

“(d) a mining permit that relates to a mineral listed in the first column of Schedule 5, if, in any 1 permit year in the next 5 permit years of its life, the annual royalty or annual production in relation to the permit will be, in the Minister's estimation, equal to or more than the amount specified in the third or fourth column of that schedule:

~~“(e) a mining permit for alluvial gold in the fifth permit year, or any subsequent permit year, if the annual royalty in relation to the permit over the previous year exceeds $50,000:~~

“(f) a permit that (irrespective of the type of mineral to which the permit relates, the year of the permit's life, or any threshold amounts specified for the mineral to which the permit relates in Schedule 5)—

“(i) relates to an underground operation or an operation that is (whether wholly or partially) 50 m or more ~~from~~ beyond the seaward side of the mean high-water mark; and

“(ii) is not for a special purpose mining activity.

~~“(2) In this Act, Tier 2 permit means—~~

~~“(a) a prospecting, exploration, or mining permit that relates to a special purpose mining activity:~~

~~“(b) a permit that is not a Tier 1 permit.~~

“(2) In this Act, Tier 2 permit means a permit that is not a Tier 1 permit.

“(3) For the purposes of the Minister making an estimate for the purposes of subsection (1)(c) or (d), the life of a permit includes any extensions of duration to the permit granted under this Act.
“2C Determination of permit tier status

“(1) This section applies to each exploration permit and mining permit whose Tier 1 (or, by default, Tier 2) status must be determined in accordance with section 2B(1)(c) or (d).

“(2) The Minister must determine the tier status of a permit—

“(a) on first granting the permit, and then once in each permit year and at any time that the permit is changed under section 36(1); or

“(b) if the permit exists on the commencement of this section, as soon as practicable after the commencement of this section, and then once in each permit year and at any time that the permit is changed under section 36(1).

“(3) The Minister may determine the tier status of a permit at any other time as he or she thinks fit.

“(4) For the purposes of subsection (2)(a), a determination made because of a change to the permit may, in the Minister's complete discretion, be treated as the required determination for the following permit year.
“2B2D Consequences of change in status of permit

“(1) ~~This section applies if a permit holder's tier changes during a permit year as a result of exceeding or falling below a relevant threshold specified in Schedule 5, so that~~ This section applies if, as a result of a determination made by the Minister under section 2C, a Tier 1 permit becomes a Tier 2 permit or a Tier 2 permit becomes a Tier 1 permit.

“(2) The chief executive must notify the permit holder of the change in tier.

“(3) The change in tier takes effect for the purposes of this Act on and from the start of the permit year following the date of the notification under subsection (2).”

10 Section 5 replaced (Functions of Minister of Energy)

Replace section 5 with:
“5 Functions of Minister

The Minister has the following functions under this Act:

“(a) to attract permit applications, including by way of public tender:

“(b) to grant permits, grant changes to permits, and revoke permits:

“(c) to prepare minerals programmes:

“(d) to co-operate with regulatory agencies that perform functions in relation to Crown owned minerals (including under section ~~90D~~ 90E):

“(e) to collect and disclose information in connection with mineral reserves and mineral production in order to—

“(i) promote informed investment decisions about mineral exploration and production; and

“(ii) improve the working of related markets:

“(f) any other functions conferred on him or her by or under this Act.”

11 Section 6 amended (Delegation of functions by Minister of Energy)

(1) In the heading to section 6, delete “of Energy”.
(2) Replace section 6(1)(a) with:
- “(a) the making of decisions on submissions on a draft minerals programme under section 18, and the recommendation of a minerals programme under section 19~~, and the issuing of a minerals programme under section 20~~:”.

12 Section 7 replaced (Appointment of enforcement officers)

Replace section 7 with:
“7 Functions of chief executive

The chief executive has the following functions under this Act:

“(a) to require, and monitor, compliance with permits, this Act, and the regulations:

“(b) to investigate conduct that constitutes or may constitute a contravention of a permit ~~or this Act~~, this Act, or the regulations:

~~“(c) to require compliance with permits and this Act:~~

“(d) to keep a register of permits and permit holders:

“(e) to advise the Minister on any matter relating to this Act:

“(f) to co-operate with regulatory agencies ~~who~~ that perform functions in relation to Crown owned minerals (including under section ~~90D~~ 90E):

“(g) any other functions conferred on him or her by or under this Act.”

13 Section 8 amended (Restrictions on prospecting or exploring for, or mining, Crown owned minerals)

(1) After section 8(2), insert:
- “(2A) Subsection (1) does not apply to the taking by any person of any Crown owned mineral in a ~~stopped~~ legal road, whether formed, unformed, or stopped, if—
  
  ~~“(a) the mineral is a mineral for which a Tier 2 permit would, but for this provision, be required; and~~
  
  “(a) the mineral is—
  
  “(i) coal; or
  
  “(ii) a mineral (other than coal) for which a Tier 2 permit would, but for this provision, be required; and
  
  “(b) the road is within an area of land that otherwise contains privately owned minerals.”
(2) In section 8(3), after “machinery”, insert “in accordance with section 98 or 98A”.

13A Section 12 and cross-heading repealed

Repeal section 12 and the cross-heading above section 12.

14 New Part 1A heading inserted

~~After section 11,~~ Before section 13, insert:

“Part 1A
“Minerals programmes”.

15 Sections 12 to 23 13 to 22 and cross-heading replaced

Replace sections ~~12 to 23~~ 13 to 22 and the cross-heading above section 22 with:
~~“12 Purpose of minerals programmes~~

The purpose of a minerals programme is to set out or describe how the Minister or the chief executive will interpret and apply this Act in relation to any Crown owned mineral or minerals that are subject to the programme.
“13 Application of minerals programmes

The most recent version of a minerals programme issued or ~~amended by the Minister~~ changed by the Governor-General under section 19 applies to all permits for minerals that are subject to the programme.
~~“14 Contents of minerals programmes~~

~~“(1) A minerals programme must—~~

~~“(a) specify the mineral to which it applies; and~~

~~“(b) set out or describe how the Minister and the chief executive will apply this Act in relation to that mineral or those minerals.~~

~~“(2) Without limiting subsection (1)(b), a minerals programme must state the policies and procedures to be applied in granting a permit for the mineral, including—~~

~~“(a) the circumstances, if any, in which non-exclusive permits will be granted; and~~

~~“(b) the circumstances, if any, in which a permit holder will not be entitled to a subsequent permit; and~~

~~“(c) the circumstances, if any, in which approval of a work programme or modified work programme will be withheld; and~~

~~“(d) the circumstances, if any, in which permits will be granted over land that is already subject to a permit or an existing privilege.~~

“(3) A minerals programme may include any other information that the Minister considers is likely to be of assistance to any person wishing to apply for a permit, including general guidance on the scheme of this Act and the regulations.

~~“(4) There must not be more than 1 minerals programme for any mineral, but a minerals programme may provide that different policies, procedures, and provisions apply—~~

~~“(a) to different areas within New Zealand; or~~

~~“(b) to a mineral occurring in different states, places, phases, or strata; or~~

~~“(c) to a mineral being explored or extracted by substantially different methods.~~

“(5) On the request of an iwi, a minerals programme may provide that defined areas of land of particular importance to the iwi's mana are excluded from the operation of the minerals programme or are not to be included in any permit.
“14 Contents of minerals programmes

“(1) A minerals programme—

“(a) must specify the mineral or minerals to which it applies; and

“(b) must set out or describe how the Minister and the chief executive will have regard to the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi) (as required by section 4) for the purposes of the minerals programme.

“(2) A minerals programme—

“(a) may set out or describe how the Minister or the chief executive will exercise any specified powers or discretions conferred on him or her by or under this Act in relation to the mineral or minerals to which the programme applies; and

“(b) may include any other information that the Minister considers is likely to be of assistance to any person wishing to use or understand the Act and the regulations, including—

“(i) general guidance on the scheme of the Act and the regulations; and

“(ii) how the Minister or the chief executive will interpret and apply specified provisions of the Act or the regulations (other than those referred to in paragraph (a)) in relation to any Crown owned mineral or minerals subject to the programme; and

“(c) on the request of an iwi or hapū, may provide that defined areas of land of particular importance to the iwi's or hapū's mana are excluded from the operation of the minerals programme or are not to be included in any permit.

“(3) There must not be more than 1 minerals programme for any mineral, but a minerals programme may provide that different practices, procedures, and provisions in the programme apply—

“(a) to different areas within New Zealand; or

“(b) to a mineral that occurs in different states, places, phases, or strata; or

“(c) to a mineral that is to be explored for or mined by substantially different methods.

“(4) A minerals programme must not be inconsistent with this Act or the regulations.

“(5) However, if there is any inconsistency between a minerals programme (including a relevant minerals programme that has effect during a transitional period) and this Act or any of the regulations, this Act or the regulation prevails.
“15 Minister must prepare draft minerals programmes

The Minister must, as soon as practicable, prepare a draft minerals programme for a Crown owned mineral, or group of Crown owned minerals, if—

“(a) there is no minerals programme for that mineral or group of minerals; and

“(b) in the opinion of the Minister, that mineral or group of minerals is likely to be the subject of a permit application under this Act.
“16 Changes to minerals programmes

“(1) The Minister may propose any change to a minerals programme.

“(2) In sections 17 and 18, a reference to a draft minerals programme includes a reference to a draft change to a minerals programme.

“(3) Nothing in section 17 or 18 applies to any change to a minerals programme if the purpose of the change is to correct any error and the effect of the change is minor.

“(4) Subsection (5) applies if the Minister decides not to proceed with a proposed change to a minerals programme and no recommendation is made to the Governor-General under section 19(1).

“(5) The Minister must—

“(a) publicly notify his or her decision; and

“(b) notify every person who made a submission under section 18.
“17 Public notice

“(1) The Minister must ensure that—

“(a) public notice is given of a draft minerals programme; and

“(b) notice is given of a draft minerals programme to all iwi; and

“(c) the draft minerals programme is available on an Internet site.

“(2) Every notice under subsection (1)(a) must—

“(a) give reasonable notice of the contents of the draft minerals programme; and

“(b) specify an Internet site where the draft minerals programme may be inspected; and

“(c) indicate that submissions may be made on the draft minerals programme, how submissions may be made, and by what date.
“18 Submissions

“(1) Any person may make a submission on a draft minerals programme.

“(2) A submission under subsection (1) must be received by the chief executive not later than 40 working days after the date of public notification under section 17.

“(3) If any submission is made under this section, the chief executive must, following the expiry of the time for making submissions, arrange for a report and recommendations to be made to the Minister in respect of all submissions.

“(4) The Minister must consider the report and recommendations made under subsection (3) and may make such changes to the draft minerals programme as the Minister thinks fit.

“(5) Despite the provisions of the Official Information Act 1982, if a request is made by any person for disclosure of information contained in a submission, the department or Minister to whom the request was made may refuse to make the information available if the department or Minister is satisfied that—

“(a) such refusal is necessary to avoid serious offence to tikanga Māori or to avoid the disclosure of the location of wāhi tapu; and

“(b) in the circumstances of the particular case, the importance of avoiding such offence or disclosure outweighs the public interest in making that information available.
“19 ~~Approval~~ Issue of minerals programmes

“(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, ~~approve~~ issue a minerals programme or ~~any~~ a change to a minerals programme.

“(2) A minerals programme is a regulation for the purposes of the Regulations (Disallowance) Act 1989, but not for the purposes of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989.

“(3) A minerals programme or ~~an amendment~~ a change to a minerals programme takes effect on and from the date specified in the order approving it, which must not be earlier than the date on which the order is made.
“20 ~~Approved~~ Notification of minerals programmes ~~to be issued~~

The Minister must—

~~“(a) issue every minerals programme by notice in the Gazette; and~~

“(b) make ~~every~~ each minerals programme issued in accordance with section 19 available on an Internet site maintained by or on behalf of the chief executive; and

“(c) notify every person who made a submission under section 18 of the issuing of a the minerals programme and where it may be inspected; and

“(d) give public notice, and notice in the Gazette, that the programme has been issued and of the places where it is available for inspection; and

“(e) make the programme available for public inspection at ~~any places that the Minister considers appropriate~~ those places .
“21 Minister may defer consideration of application for permit

~~“(1) This section applies if—~~

~~“(a) the Minister has publicly notified a proposed change to a policy, procedure, or provision in a current minerals programme; and~~

~~“(b) that programme is the relevant minerals programme in respect of an application for a permit received by the chief executive after the date of public notification of the proposed change; and~~

“(c) if the proposed change were in force, it would be likely that the Minister's decisions in respect of the application would be different than if it were made under the current relevant minerals programme.

“(1) Subsection (2) applies if the Minister has publicly notified a proposed change to a current minerals programme and—

“(a) the chief executive has received an application for a permit for a mineral to which the programme applies; and

“(b) if the proposed change were in force, it would be likely that the Minister's decisions in respect of the application would be different than if the decisions were made without the proposed change.

“(2) ~~In that case, the~~ The Minister may defer his or her consideration of the application until—

“(a) the date on which the proposed change ~~has been made~~ takes effect (as specified in the relevant Order in Council made under section 19(1); or

“(b) if the Minister ~~has decided~~ decides not to proceed with the change, the date on which the Minister publicly notifies his or her decision under section 16(5).
~~“22 Minister and chief executive must act in accordance with minerals programmes~~

~~“(1) The Minister and the chief executive must act in accordance with a minerals programme when performing a function or duty or exercising a power under this Act that relates—~~

~~“(a) to the mineral that is the subject of the minerals programme; or~~

~~“(b) to a permit or permit application in relation to the mineral that is the subject of the minerals programme.~~

“(2) To avoid doubt, if there is any inconsistency between a minerals programme (including a relevant minerals programme that has effect during a transitional period) and this Act or any regulation made under this Act, this Act or the regulation prevails.
“22 Minister and chief executive must act in accordance with minerals programmes

“(1) The Minister and the chief executive must act in accordance with a minerals programme.

“(2) However, if there is any inconsistency between the actions required of them under a minerals programme (including a relevant minerals programme that has effect during a transitional period) and the actions required of them under this Act or any of the regulations, they must act in accordance with the Act or the regulation.
“Part 1B
“Permits, access to land, and other matters
~~“23 Declaration that permits not to be issued for specified land for specified period~~

“(1) The Minister may, by notice in the Gazette, declare that specified kinds of permits will not be granted in respect of specified land during a specified period if he or she believes it is necessary to better meet the purpose of the Act.

~~“(2) A notice under subsection (1)—~~

~~“(a) must specify the kind or kinds of permits to which it applies:~~

~~“(b) must specify the land to which it applies:~~

~~“(c) may apply to different minerals, to minerals occurring in a particular state, place, phase, or strata, or to minerals to be explored or extracted by a particular method:~~

~~“(d) has effect until the close of the earlier of the following periods:~~

~~“(i) the period specified in the notice:~~

~~“(ii) 3 years from the date on which the notice is published in the Gazette.~~

~~“(3) A notice under subsection (1) does not affect any application received, or permit granted, by the Minister before the notice is published in the Gazette.~~

~~“(4) The Minister must not accept a permit application that is contrary to a notice under subsection (1) while the notice has effect.~~
~~“23A Purpose of permits~~

~~“(1) The purpose of a prospecting permit is to authorise the permit holder to prospect for minerals as specified in the permit.~~

~~“(2) The purpose of an exploration permit is to authorise the permit holder to explore for minerals as specified in the permit.~~

~~“(3) The purpose of a mining permit is to authorise the permit holder to mine for minerals as specified in the permit.~~

~~“(4) The purpose of a special purpose mining permit is to allow demonstrations of historical mining methods as provided for in the relevant minerals programme.~~
~~“23B Application for permits~~

~~Any person or persons may apply to the chief executive for a permit in respect of a mineral in land, whether or not there is a minerals programme for the mineral.”~~

15A New Part 1B heading inserted

After section 22, insert:

“Part 1B
“Permits, access to land, and other matters”.

15B Section 23 replaced (Application for permits)

Replace section 23 with:
“23 Declaration that permits not to be issued or extended for specified land for specified period

“(1) The Minister may, by notice in the Gazette, declare that specified kinds of permits will not be granted, or extended, in respect of specified land during a specified period if he or she believes the declaration is necessary to better meet the purpose of the Act.

“(2) A notice under subsection (1)—

“(a) must specify the kind or kinds of permits to which it applies:

“(b) must specify the land to which it applies:

“(c) may apply to different minerals, to minerals that occur in a particular state, place, phase, or stratum, or to minerals that are to be explored for or mined by a particular method:

“(d) has effect until the close of the earlier of the following periods:

“(i) the period specified in the notice:

“(ii) 3 years from the date on which the notice is published in the Gazette.

“(3) A notice under subsection (1) does not affect any—

“(a) application received by the Minister before the notice is published in the Gazette; or

“(b) permit granted before the notice is published in the Gazette; or

“(c) right under section 32 of the holder of a permit described in paragraph (b) to be granted a subsequent permit.

“(4) The Minister must not accept a permit application that is contrary to a notice under subsection (1) while the notice has effect, unless the application relates to a subsequent permit referred to in subsection (3)(c).
“23A Purpose of permits

“(1) The purpose of a prospecting permit is to authorise the permit holder to prospect for minerals as specified in the permit.

“(2) The purpose of an exploration permit is to authorise the permit holder to explore for minerals as specified in the permit.

“(3) The purpose of a mining permit is to authorise the permit holder to mine for minerals as specified in the permit.
“23B Application for permits

Any person or persons may apply to the chief executive for a permit in respect of a mineral in land, whether or not there is a minerals programme for the mineral.”

16 Section 25 replaced (Grant of permit)

Replace section 25 with:
“25 Grant of permit

~~“(1) The Minister may grant a prospecting permit, an exploration permit, or a mining permit under this Act in respect of minerals in land.~~

~~“(2) The Minister may grant a permit to any person or persons subject to—~~

~~“(a) this Act; and~~

~~“(b) section 5A(3) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964.~~

“(1) The Minister may grant a prospecting permit, an exploration permit, or a mining permit under this Act in respect of minerals in land—

“(a) to any person or persons; and

“(b) in either of the following ways:

“(i) as the result of an application initiated by a person under section 23B:

“(ii) as the result of a public tender process under section 24; and

“(c) subject to any conditions that the Minister may impose, as the Minister thinks fit, including authorising the prospecting or exploration for, or mining of, a mineral only—

“(i) in particular circumstances; or

“(ii) by means of a particular method; or

“(iii) if the mineral occurs in a particular state, place, phase, or stratum.

“(2) However, the Minister is not obliged to grant a permit to any person or persons unless expressly required to do so under section 32.

“(3) ~~The permit~~ Each permit granted by the Minister must specify—

“(a) the minerals and land to which the permit applies; and

“(b) the conditions on which the permit is granted; and

“(c) the name ~~and contact details~~ of the permit ~~operator~~ participants; and

“(d) the name ~~and contact details~~ of the permit ~~participants~~ operator; and

“(e) if any of the minerals to which the permit applies are minerals listed in the first column of Schedule 5, whether the permit in respect of those minerals is a Tier 1 or a Tier 2 permit.

“(4) ~~The~~ A permit may also specify the date on which the permit expires if the permit is to expire on a date earlier than the default expiry date set out in section 35.

“(5) A permit must not be granted under this Part if a monetary deposit or bond that is required by the Minister as security for compliance with the conditions of the permit has not been deposited with the chief executive.

“(6) The Minister must not grant an exploration permit or a mining permit in respect of privately owned minerals, except as provided for by section 84 of the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011.

“(6A) If an existing privilege exists, the Minister must not grant a permit in respect of all or part of the land and the mineral to which the privilege relates without the consent of the current holder of the privilege.

“(7) Subsection (1) is subject to section 5A(3) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964.”

17 Section 27 replaced (Provisions relating to granting of permit)

Replace section 27 with:
~~“27 General provisions about granting of permits~~

~~“(1) The Minister may grant a permit in the following ways:~~

~~“(a) as the result of an application initiated by a person under section 23B:~~

~~“(b) as the result of a public tender process under section 24:~~

~~“(c) as the result of an application under section 32 for a subsequent permit.~~

~~“(2) The Minister may grant a permit subject to any conditions that he or she thinks fit.~~

“(3) The Minister may (without limitation) grant a permit authorising the prospecting or exploration for, or mining of, a mineral only in particular circumstances or only by means of a particular method, including a mineral occurring in a particular state, place, phase, or strata.
“27A Permit holder must have permit operator

“(1) A permit holder must have a permit operator.

~~“(2) The permit operator for a permit is,—~~

~~“(a) if the permit holder comprises only 1 permit participant, the permit holder; or~~

~~“(b) if the permit holder comprises 2 or more permit participants, the permit participant designated by the permit holder in the permit application as the permit operator.~~

“(2) A permit operator must be a permit participant.

“(3) For the purposes of the permit and this Act, the permit operator is responsible, on behalf of the permit holder, for the day-to-day management of activities under the permit.”

18 New sections 29A and 29B section 29A and cross-heading inserted

After section 29, insert:
“Process for dealing with applications for permits
“29A Process for considering application

“(1) An applicant for a permit must provide to the Minister—

“(aa) the name and contact details of the proposed permit participants and the proposed permit operator; and

“(a) a proposed work programme for the permit the applicant is applying for, and the programme may comprise committed or and contingent work; and

“(b) in the case of an exploration permit for minerals other than petroleum, an estimate of the expected total work programme expenditure in relation to the permit; and

“(c) any other information prescribed in the regulations.

“(2) Before granting a permit, the Minister must be satisfied ~~that~~—

“(a) that the proposed work programme provided by the applicant is consistent with—

“(i) the purpose of this Act; and

“(ii) the purpose of the proposed permit; and

“(iii) good industry practice in respect of the proposed activities; and

“(b) that the applicant is likely to comply with ~~the conditions of~~, and give proper effect to, ~~any permit granted~~ the proposed work programme, taking into account—

“(i) the applicant's technical capability ~~to carry out the proposed work programme~~; and

“(ii) the applicant's financial capability ~~to carry out the proposed work programme and~~ (including the ability to pay any money owed to the Crown); and

“(iii) any relevant information on the applicant’s failure to comply with ~~other~~ permits or rights, or conditions in respect of those permits or rights, to prospect, explore, or mine in New Zealand or internationally; and

“(ba) that the applicant is likely to comply with the relevant obligations under the Act or the regulations in respect of reporting and the payment of fees and royalties; and

“(c) in the case of a Tier 1 permit for exploration or mining, that the proposed permit operator has, or is likely to have, by the time the relevant work in any granted permit is undertaken, ~~the operator is likely to have,~~ the capability and systems that are likely to be required to meet the ~~health, safety, and environmental~~ health and safety and environmental requirements of all specified Acts for the types of activities proposed under the permit.

“(3) For the purposes of the Minister satisfying himself or herself of the matter in subsection (2)(c), the Minister—

“(a) is only required to undertake a high-level preliminary assessment; and

“(b) must seek the views of the Health and Safety Regulator and may, but is not required to, obtain the views of any other regulatory agency; and

“(c) may, but is not required to, rely on the views of the regulatory agencies; and

“(d) is not required to duplicate any assessment process that a regulatory agency may be required to undertake in accordance with a specified Act.

“(4) To avoid doubt, the requirement in subsection (2)(c) does not limit, have any effect on, or have any bearing on—

“(a) whether the permit holder or permit operator is required to obtain any permit, consent, or other permission under any health and safety or environmental legislation:

“(b) the granting to the permit holder or permit operator of any permit, consent, or other permission necessary under any health and safety or environmental legislation by any government agency, consent authority, or Minister responsible for the administration of that legislation.
~~“29B Granting of permit not indicative of any matter relating to health, safety, and environmental legislation~~

To avoid doubt, a decision of the Minister to grant a Tier 1 permit for exploration, after having being satisfied, amongst other things, of the matter in section 29A(2)(c), does not limit or have any effect on, or have any bearing on, either of the following:

~~“(a) whether a permit holder is required to obtain any permit, consent, or other permission under any relevant health, safety, or environmental legislation:~~

“(b) the granting to the permit holder of any permit, consent, or other permission necessary under any relevant health, safety, or environmental legislation by any government agency, consent authority (within the meaning of section 2(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991), or Minister responsible for the administration of that legislation.”

19 Section 30 amended (Rights to prospect, explore, mine)

~~(1) In section 30(7), replace “Subject to subsection (8) and unless the permit” with “Unless the permit or an applicable minerals programme”.~~

~~(2) Repeal section 30(8).~~

20 Section 32 amended (Right of permit holder to subsequent permits)

(1AA ) In section 32(1) and (3), after “27,” insert “29A,”.

(1AB) In section 32(1) and (3), replace “23” with “23B”.

(1AC) In section 32(4), replace “under” with “in accordance with”.
(1AD) Replace section 32(5) with:
- “(5) Subsection (5A) applies if a mining permit is to be granted in accordance with subsection (3) and the initial permit or any subsequent permit specified any condition to be included in the mining permit or in any subsequent privilege, right, or licence conferring a right to mine.
- “(5A) The condition must be included in the mining permit, unless the Minister and the holder of the exploration permit otherwise agree, and no other or additional condition which modifies or conflicts with the condition may be included in the mining permit without the consent of the holder of the mining permit.”
(1) After section 32(7), insert:
- “(8) A permit that is the subject of an application for a subsequent permit under this section continues in force until the Minister determines the application.”

21 Section 33 replaced (Permit holder to comply with permit and this Act)

Replace section 33 with:
“33 Permit holder responsibilities

“(1) A permit holder must—

~~“(a) comply with the conditions of the permit, this Act, and the regulations; and~~

“(a) comply with—

“(i) the conditions of the permit; and

“(ii) this Act and the regulations; and

“(iii) the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 and regulations made under that Act; and

“(b) perform activities under the permit in accordance with good industry practice; and

“(c) submit royalty returns, and pay royalties~~, as required by or under this Act~~; and

“(d) keep records for at least 7 years after the year to which they relate or for at least 2 years after the permit to which they relate ceases to be in force, whichever is the longer; and

“(e) co-operate with the Minister, the chief executive, and enforcement officers for the purpose of ~~compliance~~ complying with the conditions of the permit, this Act, and the regulations.

“(2) Subsection (3) applies if the permit holder is 2 or more persons.

“(3) Each person to whom this subsection applies is jointly and severally liable to comply with and perform the obligations of the permit holder under the permit, this Act, and the regulations.
“33AA Exercise of permit conditional on clearance from Health and Safety Regulator

“(1) Subsection (2) applies if the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992, or regulations made under that Act, expressly provide that the Health and Safety Regulator must give its approval or consent before an activity can be carried out under a permit.

“(2) The activity must not be carried out until—

“(a) the Health and Safety Regulator has given its approval or consent; and

“(b) the Health and Safety Regulator has advised the chief executive that it has given its approval or consent; and

“(c) the chief executive has notified the permit holder of the Health and Safety Regulator's advice.
“33AAB Health and Safety Regulator to notify chief executive of breaches of legislation

“(1) The Health and Safety Regulator must notify the chief executive if—

“(a) a permit holder is issued with a prohibition notice under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992; or

“(b) an enforcement action is taken against the permit holder under that Act.

“(2) Nothing in this Act derogates from the Health and Safety Regulator's responsibility for the administration and enforcement of that Act.

“(3) In this section, prohibition notice and enforcement action have the meanings given by section 2(1) of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992.
“33A Iwi engagement reports

“(1) Every holder of a Tier 1 permit must provide to the Minister an annual report of the holder's engagement with iwi or hapū whose rohe includes ~~the area of the permit~~ some or all of the permit area or who otherwise may be directly affected by the permit.

~~“(2) Every holder of a permit of any other kind or class specified in the regulations must provide to the Minister an annual report of the holder's engagement with iwi affected by the permit.~~

“(2) Every holder of a Tier 2 permit of any class or kind specified in the regulations must provide to the Minister an annual report of the holder's engagement with iwi or hapū whose rohe includes some or all of the permit area or who otherwise may be directly affected by the permit.

“(3) Regulations may specify—

“(a) an annual period to which annual reports must apply, which may vary for different classes or kinds of Tier 2 permit:

“(b) a time by which annual reports must be provided, which may vary for different classes or kinds of Tier 2 permit.
“33B Annual review meeting for holders of Tier 1 permits

“(1) The chief executive may require the ~~holders of~~ holder of a Tier 1 ~~permits~~ permit to attend, once in each permit year, a review meeting for the purposes of—

“(a) monitoring the permit holder's progress against the work programme for the permit; and

“(b) providing an opportunity for discussion between the chief executive, the permit holder, the appropriate Minister (but only if the permit relates to Crown land), and any ~~other person or~~ regulatory agency that the chief executive has invited to attend the meeting.

“(1A) Without limiting subsection (1)(b), the chief executive must invite any regulatory agency that he or she thinks is likely to have regulatory oversight of the activities under the permit to attend a review meeting. However, the chief executive may limit the agency's attendance at the meeting to only those parts of the meeting that are relevant to its oversight.

“(2) Unless otherwise agreed between the chief executive and a permit holder, a review meeting must be—

“(a) held on a date and at a place notified to the permit holder by the chief executive (which date must be 20 working days or more after the date of notification); and

“(b) attended by at least 1 representative of the permit operator who has sufficient seniority, expertise, and knowledge to enable full discussion of the work programme and conditions of the permit.

“(3) Any person other than those referred to in subsections (1) and (1A) may attend a review meeting only with the consent of the permit holder.”

22 Section 35 replaced (Duration of permit)

Replace section 35 with:
“35 Duration of permit

“(1) A prospecting permit expires—

“(a) 4 years after the commencement date specified in the permit; or

“(b) if an earlier expiry date is specified in the permit, on that date.

“(2) A prospecting permit may not be extended beyond 4 years after the commencement date specified in the permit.

“(3) An exploration permit for petroleum expires—

“(a) 15 years after the commencement date specified in the permit; or

“(b) if an earlier expiry date is specified in the permit, on that date.

“(4) An exploration permit for petroleum may be extended only in accordance with ~~sections 35A and 36(1) to (3) and (4D)~~ section 35A.

“(5) An exploration permit for ~~non-petroleum~~ minerals other than petroleum expires—

“(a) 10 years after the commencement date specified in the permit; or

“(b) if an earlier expiry date is specified in the permit, on that date.

“(6) An exploration permit for ~~non-petroleum~~ minerals other than petroleum may not be extended beyond 10 years after the commencement date specified in the permit, unless ~~it is~~ extended further under ~~sections 35A and 36(1) to (3)~~ section 35A.

“(7) A mining permit expires—

“(a) 40 years after the commencement date specified in the permit; or

“(b) if an earlier expiry date is specified in the permit, on that date.

“(8) A mining permit may be extended only in accordance with section 36(1), (2), and (5).

“(9) The Minister may, on the application of a permit holder, ~~defer or~~ amend the commencement date of a permit, and subsection (1), (3), (5), or (7) applies accordingly, if the Minister is satisfied that—

“(a) the permit holder has been prevented from commencing activities under the permit by delays in obtaining consents under any Act; and

“(b) those delays have not been caused or contributed to by default on the part of the permit holder.

“(10) If the Minister ~~defers or~~ amends the commencement date of a permit under subsection (9), the new commencement date must be specified in the permit.
“35A Appraisal extension of exploration permits

“(1) The holder of an exploration permit may apply (in accordance with section 36(1) to (3)) to the Minister for an appraisal extension, and the Minister may extend the permit for any period the Minister considers necessary to enable the permit holder to carry out the appraisal work for a discovery if—

~~“(a) the permit holder has made a discovery; and~~

~~“(b) the duration of the permit is insufficient to carry out the appraisal work for the discovery; and~~

~~“(c) the Minister is satisfied that the appraisal work programme is sufficient to carry out the appraisal work.~~

“(2) The purpose of an appraisal extension is to determine the extent and characteristics of a discovery (being a discovery that has the potential to lead to the grant of a mining permit) in order to determine whether the requirements for a mining permit can be met.

“(1) The holder of an exploration permit may apply to the Minister, in accordance with section 36(1) to (3), for an extension to the duration of the permit (an appraisal extension) so as to appraise the extent and characteristics of a discovery and the Minister may grant an extension for that purpose for any period the Minister considers necessary, up to a maximum of 4 years.

“(2) However, the Minister may grant an appraisal extension under subsection (1) only if the Minister is satisfied that—

“(a) the permit holder has made a discovery that has the potential to lead to the granting of a mining permit; and

“(b) the current specified duration of the permit does not allow sufficient time to appraise the discovery; and

“(c) the work programme in relation to the appraisal is adequate.

“(3) If the Minister grants an appraisal extension, it must be restricted to the land in the permit to which the Minister determines it is likely that the discovery relates.

“(4) A permit holder granted an appraisal extension under subsection (1) may apply to the Minister once only for a further appraisal extension, and subsection (1) applies as if the reference to an appraisal extension were a reference to a further appraisal extension.
“35B Conditions imposing relinquishment obligation: prospecting permits

“(1) The Minister may impose a condition of the kind described in subsection (2) on—

“(a) the grant of a prospecting permit other than a prospecting permit for petroleum; or

“(b) the grant of an application for a change to any prospecting permit other than a prospecting permit for petroleum.

“(2) The Minister may impose a condition requiring the permit holder to relinquish a specified amount of the permit area at a specified time or on a specified event (a relinquishment obligation).

“(3) The Minister may impose a relinquishment obligation not more than twice in relation to a permit, and the total area to be relinquished must not exceed 50% of the original area of land to which the permit applied.

~~“(4) The holder of a permit that is subject to a relinquishment obligation must apply to the Minister for approval to relinquish an area specified in the application.~~

“(4) The holder of a permit that is subject to a relinquishment obligation must submit to the Minister for approval, within the time frame specified in the permit condition, a map of the area that the holder proposes to relinquish.

~~“(5) The Minister must approve the area to be relinquished, taking into account the following:~~

~~“(a) whether the remaining area is consistent with the work programme:~~

~~“(b) the effect that the shape and location of the remaining area has on the practical viability of subsequently permitting the relinquished area.~~

“(5) The Minister must consider the map and approve the area to be relinquished, with or without amendment, as he or she thinks fit.

~~“(6) A permit holder is deemed to contravene the conditions of the permit if the holder fails to apply for and obtain approval in accordance with this section.~~
“35C Conditions imposing relinquishment obligation: exploration permits

“(1) The Minister may impose a condition of the kind described in subsection (2) on—

“(a) the grant of an exploration permit; or

“(b) the grant of an application for a change to an exploration permit.

“(2) The Minister may impose a condition requiring the permit holder to relinquish a specified amount of the permit area at a specified time or on a specified event (a relinquishment obligation).

“(3) The Minister may impose a relinquishment obligation not more than twice in relation to a permit, and the total area to be relinquished must not exceed,—

“(a) in the case of an exploration permit for petroleum, 75% of the original area of land to which the permit applied:

“(b) in the case of an exploration permit for minerals other than petroleum, 50% of the original area of land to which the permit applied.

~~“(4) The holder of a permit that is subject to a relinquishment obligation must apply to the Minister for approval to relinquish an area specified in the application.~~

“(4) The holder of a permit that is subject to a relinquishment obligation must submit to the Minister for approval, within the time frame specified in the permit condition, a map of the area that the holder proposes to relinquish.

~~“(5) The Minister must approve the area to be relinquished, taking into account the following:~~

~~“(a) whether the remaining area is consistent with the work programme:~~

~~“(b) the effect that the shape and location of the remaining area has on the practical viability of subsequently permitting the relinquished area.~~

“(5) The Minister must consider the map and approve the area to be relinquished, with or without amendment, as he or she thinks fit.

~~“(6) A permit holder contravenes the conditions of the permit if the holder fails to apply for and obtain approval in accordance with this section.”~~

23 New cross-heading above section 36 inserted

Above section 36, insert:

“Changes to permits”.

24 Section 36 amended (Change to permit)

(1) Replace section 36(1) to (4A) with:
- “(1) ~~Subject to the relevant minerals programme and on payment of the prescribed fee (if any), the~~ The Minister may, on any conditions that he or she thinks fit and at any time or times during the currency of a permit, change a permit by granting a certificate of change to the permit—
  
  “(a) with the prior written consent of the permit holder; or
  
  “(b) on the written application of the permit holder; or
  
  “(c) in the manner, if any, provided in the permit.
- “(2) A change to a permit may do 1 or more of the following:
  
  “(a) amend the conditions of the permit:
  
  “(b) extend the land to which the permit relates:
  
  “(c) change the minerals to which the permit relates:
  
  “(d) extend the duration of the permit.
- “(2A) An application under subsection (1)(b) to extend the duration of an exploration permit for petroleum may only be made as provided by section 35A.
- “(3) An application under subsection (1)(b) ~~for an extension to~~ to extend the duration of a mining permit in accordance with this section, or ~~an extension to~~ to extend the duration of an exploration permit under section 35A, must be received by the Minister not later than 6 months before the expiry of the permit.
- “(4) If However, if the Minister is satisfied that there are compelling reasons why a permit holder could not comply with subsection (3), the Minister may receive an application ~~under subsection (1)(b)~~ by a later date agreed by the Minister.
- “(4A) All other applications under subsection (1)(b) must be received by the Minister not later than 90 days before—
  
  “(a) the expiry date of ~~expiry of~~ the permit; or
  
  “(b) in the case of an application to change the specified date by which specified work must be carried out, the specified date; or
  
  “(c) in the case of an application to change the specified work that must be carried out by a specified date, the specified date.
- “(4B) If However, if the Minister is satisfied that there are compelling reasons why a permit holder could not comply with subsection (4A), the Minister may receive an application ~~under subsection (1)(b)~~ by a later date agreed by the Minister (which date must not be later than ~~30 days before~~ the date of expiry of the permit or ~~30 days before~~ the specified date by which the specified work must be done).
- ~~“(4C) If a permit holder makes an application to which subsection (4A)(b) or (c) applies, the permit holder—~~
  
  ~~“(a) does not contravene the condition that the permit holder has applied to change if that condition—~~
  
  ~~“(i) must be complied with or fulfilled while the application is being considered by the Minister; and~~
  
  ~~“(ii) is not complied with or fulfilled; but~~
  
  ~~“(b) if the application is declined, contravenes that condition from the date on which the condition should have been complied with or fulfilled.~~
- “(4C) If a permit holder makes an application to which subsection (4A)(b) or (c) applies, the permit holder does not contravene the condition that the permit holder has applied to change if the condition—
  
  “(a) must be complied with or fulfilled while the application is being considered by the Minister; and
  
  “(b) is not complied with or fulfilled while the application is being considered by the Minister.
- “(4CA) However, if the application is declined, the permit holder contravenes the condition from the date on which the condition should have been complied with or fulfilled.
- ~~“(4D) An application under subsection (1) to extend an exploration permit for petroleum must be dealt with as set out in section 35A.”~~
(1A) In section 36(5)(a), replace “date of expiration” with “expiry date”.

(2) In section 36(5A), replace “section 37” with “section 35A”.

25 Sections 37 and 38 replaced

Replace sections 37 and 38 with:
“37 Process for Minister's proposal to change work programme for petroleum mining permit

“(1) The work programme for a petroleum mining permit granted on or after the commencement of this section may be changed in accordance with this section if the change is necessary to maximise the economic recovery of the petroleum in accordance with good industry practice.

“(2) If the Minister considers, on the basis of information on the characteristics and extent of the petroleum field received by the Minister at any time during the currency of the permit, that a change to the work programme is necessary, the Minister must notify the permit holder of the proposed change and set out the reasons why it is being proposed.

“(3) If the permit holder and the Minister cannot agree on the proposed changes, the permit holder may notify the Minister within 30 days after the date of the notification under subsection (2) (or within any further time that the Minister may allow) that the permit holder requires a determination by an independent expert on—

“(a) whether the work programme should be changed to maximise the economic recovery of the petroleum in accordance with good industry practice; and

“(b) what any change should be.

“(4) If the permit holder does not exercise the right under subsection (3) within the time specified by or allowed under that subsection, the conditions of the permit are deemed to be changed as proposed by the Minister.

“(5) If the permit holder exercises the right under subsection (3) within the time specified by or allowed under that subsection, an independent expert must be appointed by agreement between the Minister and the permit holder, or, failing agreement, by the President of the New Zealand Law Society (or his or her delegate) on the application of either party.
“38 Determination by independent expert

“(1) In making a determination for the purposes of section 37(3), ~~the~~ an independent expert must have regard to the submissions from the Minister and the permit holder respectively, but is not required to conduct a hearing.

“(2) Each party must provide a single set of written submissions, and any written evidence and any relevant documents or technical reports may be provided with the submissions.

“(3) In accordance with a timetable set by the independent expert,—

“(a) the permit holder must provide its submissions to the independent expert ~~first~~ and provide a copy to the Minister at the same time; and

“(b) the Minister must subsequently provide his or her submissions to the independent expert and provide a copy to the permit holder at the same time.

“(4) The Minister and the permit holder must provide the independent expert with any assistance the independent expert may reasonably request.

“(5) After due consideration, the independent expert must provide a written determination to the Minister and the permit holder.

“(6) Any change to a work programme determined by the independent expert—

“(a) must be limited to what is reasonably required to ensure that the economic recovery of the resource is maximised ~~over the remaining duration of the permit~~ in accordance with good industry practice; and

“(b) takes effect on the date of the determination.

“(7) The conditions of the permit holder's permit are deemed to be changed—

“(a) in accordance with any change to a work programme determined by the independent expert; and

“(b) with effect on the date of the determination.

“(8) The independent expert must not act as a mediator or an arbitrator and the Arbitration Act 1996 does not apply.

“(9) Unless agreed otherwise by the Minister and the permit holder, or unless the independent expert considers one party should bear a greater proportion or all of the fees on the ground that the party's position has not been reasonable, the independent expert's fees must be borne equally by the parties.

“(9) The independent expert's fees must be borne equally by the parties unless the independent expert determines one party should bear a greater proportion or all of the fees on the ground that the party's position has not been reasonable.

~~“(10) The independent expert's decision is (in the absence of manifest error) final and binding on the parties.~~

“(10) The independent expert's determination is final and binding on the parties and there is no right of appeal against the determination. However, if the Minister and the permit holder agree a different allocation of costs to that determined by the independent expert, the determination must be treated as varied to the extent agreed.

“(11) The permit holder must continue to comply with its existing work programme pending the independent expert's consideration and determination of the matter.”

26 Section 39 amended (Revocation of permit)

(1) Replace the heading to section 39 with “Revocation or transfer of permit”.
(2) Replace section 39(1) to (6) with:
- “(1) The Minister may revoke a permit or transfer a permit to the Minister (in replacement for the permit holder)—
  
  ~~“(a) if the Minister is satisfied that a permit holder has contravened a condition of the permit or a condition imposed by this Act or the regulations; or~~
  
  “(a) if the Minister is satisfied that a permit holder has contravened—
  
  “(i) a condition of the permit; or
  
  “(ii) this Act or the regulations; or
  
  “(b) in any case where a condition relates to payment of money to the Crown under the permit ~~or this Act~~, this Act, or the regulations, payment has not been made within 90 days after the due date for the payment~~; or~~.
  
  “(c) if the Minister is not satisfied in terms of section 41A(6) that the permit holder, following a change of control of a permit participant, is capable of meeting its financial obligations under the permit.
- “(2) Before deciding whether to revoke or transfer a permit, the Minister must serve on the permit holder written notice of his or her intention to revoke or transfer the permit that—
  
  “(a) sets out the grounds on which the Minister intends to revoke or transfer the permit; and
  
  “(b) gives the holder 20 40 working days after the date on which the notice is served to—
  
  “(i) remove the grounds for the revocation or transfer; or
  
  “(ii) provide reasons why the permit should not be revoked or transferred.
- “(3) The Minister may, by serving written notice on the permit holder, revoke or transfer the permit with effect on the date that is 20 41 working days after the date on which the notice is served if—
  
  “(a) the grounds for revocation or transfer have not been removed; or
  
  “(b) after having considered reasons provided in accordance with subsection (2)(b)(ii), the Minister still considers there are grounds for revoking or transferring the permit.
- “(4) If the Minister transfers a permit in accordance with subsection (3),—
  
  “(a) the permit is automatically transferred into the name of the Minister; and
  
  “(b) the consent of the Minister under section 41 is not required to transfer the permit to, or from, the Minister; and
  
  “(c) the Minister may exercise the rights granted by the permit, or offer it or any share in it for sale by public tender or otherwise.
- “(5) A permit holder who is served with written notice under subsection (3) may, not later than 20 working days after the date on which the notice is served, appeal against the Minister's decision to the High Court, but only on the ground that the decision is erroneous in point of law.
- ~~“(6) An appeal under subsection (5)—~~
  
  ~~“(a) may be on the ground only that the decision is erroneous in point of law; and~~
  
  ~~“(b) must be heard and determined by the High Court.~~
- “(6A) Pending the determination of an appeal under subsection (5), the permit in respect of which the appeal is made continues in force for all purposes unless it sooner expires.
- “(6B) The Minister must record any revocation or transfer of a permit on the register of permits, but need not record the reasons for the revocation or transfer.”

27 Section 40 amended (Surrender of permit)

(1) Replace section 40(1) with:
- “(1) A permit holder may apply to the chief executive to surrender a permit or any part of it by—
  
  “(a) lodging an application; and
  
  “(b) paying any money ~~owing~~ the permit holder owes to the Crown under this Act; and
  
  “(c) providing information and records as required by the permit, this Act, or the regulations.”
(1A) In section 40(2), after “is in order”, insert “and, in the case of a partial surrender, the Minister has approved the area to be surrendered under subsection (7A)”.
(2) After section 40(2), insert:
- “(2A) Despite subsection (1)(b) and (c), the chief executive may ~~approve~~ accept a surrender application even though the permit holder has not paid to the Crown all the money owing to the Crown or has not provided to the chief executive all the information and records required to be provided.”
(3) Replace section 40(3) with:
- “(3) For the purposes of subsections (5) and (6), if a permit becomes the property of the Minister under this section,—
  
  “(a) the permit is deemed to have been surrendered under this section; and
  
  “(b) the date on which the permit is deemed to have been surrendered,—
  
  “(i) for the purposes of subsection (5), is the date that the surrender application was lodged; and
  
  “(ii) for the purposes of subsection (6), is the date of the Minister's decision under subsection (2).”
(4) After section 40(7), insert:
- “(7A) The Minister may approve the area to be surrendered, with or without amendment, as he or she thinks fit.”

28 Section 41 replaced (Transfers and other dealings with permits)

Replace section 41 with:
“41 Transfer of interest in permit

~~“(1) In this section and sections 41A to 41D, unless the context otherwise requires,—~~

~~“agreement—~~

~~“(a) includes a contract or deed and an arrangement; but~~

~~“(b) does not include—~~

~~“(i) an agreement that creates a mortgage or a charge over a permit; or~~

~~“(ii) an access arrangement~~

~~“transfer includes assign.~~

~~“(2) A permit participant may enter into an agreement to transfer some or all of that participant's interest in a permit.~~

~~“(3) However, the transfer has no legal effect if the Minister does not consent to the transfer.~~

“(3) The transfer of all or part of a participating interest in a permit requires the consent of the Minister under this section.

“(4) An application for consent to a transfer must—

“(a) be made jointly by the ~~transferor~~ relevant permit participant and the transferee; and

“(b) be made within 3 months after the date of the agreement that contains the ~~proposed~~ transfer; and

“(c) be accompanied by a copy of the agreement that contains the ~~proposed~~ transfer; and

“(d) be accompanied by evidence of the notification required under subsection (5).

“(5) Before or at the same time as the application is made, the ~~transferor~~ permit participant must notify any other permit participants that ~~the transferor~~ it has applied for consent to the transfer.

“(6) If so required by the Minister, the transferee must provide to the Minister—

“(a) a statement, signed by or on behalf of the transferee, in which the person signing the statement must ~~state whether or not~~ confirm that the transferee has the financial capability ~~to comply with the conditions of, and give proper effect to, the permit and pay to the Crown all fees and royalties due to the Crown~~ to meet its obligations under the permit (a statement of financial capability); and

“(b) any ~~relevant~~ specified supporting information.

“(7) If the transferee is a company, a statement of financial capability must be signed on behalf of all the directors by at least 2 directors of the company or, if the company has only 1 director, by that director.

“(8) Before granting consent, the Minister must be satisfied that the transferee ~~will, following the transfer, be~~ is likely to be able to comply with the conditions of, and give proper effect to, the permit.

“(9) The chief executive must record the transfer of any participating interest consented to by the Minister under this section on the permit concerned and the transfer is effective, for the purposes of the permit, this Act, and the regulations from the date of the Minister's consent.
“41A Change of control of permit participants

“(1AA) For the purposes of this section, a corporate body undergoes a change of control if—

“(a) a person (person A) obtains the power (whether directly or indirectly) to exercise, or control the exercise of, 50% or more of the voting rights in the corporate body; or

“(b) a person (person A) obtains, together with 1 or more specified persons, the power (whether directly or indirectly) to exercise, or control the exercise of, 50% or more of the voting rights in the corporate body.

“(1) A permit participant must notify the Minister in accordance with subsection (2) if—

“(a) the permit participant is a corporate body and undergoes a change of control; or

“(b) a corporate body that has provided a guarantee for the permit participant's obligations under the permit (guarantor) undergoes a change of control.

~~“(2) For the purposes of this section, a person (person A) obtains control of a permit participant if—~~

~~“(a) person A obtains the power (whether directly or indirectly) to exercise, or control the exercise of, 50% or more of the voting rights in the permit participant; or~~

“(b) person A obtains, together with 1 or more specified persons, the power (whether directly or indirectly) to exercise, or control the exercise of, 50% or more of the voting rights in the permit participant.

~~“(3) The notification must—~~

~~“(a) be given within 3 months of the change of control; and~~

~~“(b) be accompanied by a statement of financial capability (as defined in section 41(6)) and a copy of any agreement or document that contains the change of control.~~

“(2) The notification must be given within 3 months of the change of control and be accompanied by—

“(a) a copy of any agreement or document that specifies the change of control; and

“(b) a statement from the permit participant that it has the financial capability to meet its obligations under the permit; and

“(c) in the case of a change of control of a guarantor, a statement from the guarantor that it has the financial capability to meet its obligations under the guarantee.

“(3) A statement for the purposes of subsection (2)(b) or (c) must be signed,—

“(a) if the permit participant or guarantor is a company, on behalf of all the directors by at least 2 directors of the company or, if the company has only 1 director, by that director; or

“(b) if the permit participant or guarantor is not a company, by a person responsible for the management of the permit participant or guarantor.

“(4) ~~If so required by the Minister, the~~ The permit participant must provide to the Minister information or documents relevant to the financial capability of person A (as defined in subsection (1AA)), which may be general information about person A's financial capability or information specific to the matters referred to in subsection (2)(b) or (c), as the case may be.

“(4A) However, the permit participant must do so only if the Minister requests the information or documents no later than 3 months from the date on which the permit participant notifies the Minister of the change of control in accordance with this section.

~~“(5) A statement of financial capability must be signed,—~~

~~“(a) if the permit participant is a company, on behalf of all the directors by at least 2 directors of the company or, if the company has only 1 director, by that director; or~~

~~“(b) if the permit participant is not a company, by a person responsible for the management of the permit participant.~~

“(6) The Minister may revoke the permit in accordance with section 39 if the Minister is not satisfied that the permit holder, following the change of control, is capable of meeting its financial obligations under the permit.

“(6) The Minister may revoke the permit in accordance with the procedure set out in section 39 if the Minister—

“(a) is not satisfied that, following the change of control, the permit holder has the financial capability to meet its obligations under the permit; and

“(b) revokes the permit no later than 6 months from the date on which the permit participant notifies the change of control in accordance with this section.

“(7) In subsection ~~(2)(b)~~ (1AA)(b), a specified person, in relation to person A, means—

“(a) a person who is acting or will act jointly or in concert with person A in respect of exercising, or controlling the exercise of, the voting rights in of the permit participant; or

“(b) a person who acts, or is accustomed to ~~act~~ acting, in accordance with the wishes of person A.
“41B Dealings

“(1) A permit participant may enter into a dealing.

“(2) However, the dealing has no legal effect if the dealing relates to a Tier 1 permit and the Minister does not consent to the dealing.

“(3) An application for consent to a dealing must—

“(a) be made to the Minister; and

“(b) be made within 3 months after the date of the agreement that contains the ~~proposed~~ dealing; and

“(c) be accompanied by a copy of the agreement that contains the ~~proposed~~ dealing.

“(4) In this section, dealing means any agreement (other than a transfer of ~~interests~~ a participating interest, or a mortgage or other charge) that imposes on any permit participant any obligation that relates to the sale or the proceeds of production, if—

“(a) a reasonable person would consider that the agreement—

“(i) has not been entered into on an arm’s-length basis; or

“(ii) is not on arm’s-length terms; or

“(iii) is otherwise not on a fair market basis; or

“(b) the term of the agreement is for 12 months or longer.
“41C Change of permit operator

“(1) A permit operator may be changed only with the prior consent of the Minister and no change of permit operator has any effect without that consent.

“(2) An application for consent must—

“(a) be made by the permit holder; and

“(b) be made jointly with the proposed new operator if that operator is not an existing permit participant.

“(3) An application for consent to a change of permit operator must be treated as if it were an application by the permit holder for the grant of an initial permit of the same kind as that initial permit, and the provisions of this Act relating to the granting of initial permits of that kind apply with the necessary modifications.

“(3) The Minister may give consent to the change only—

“(a) if the Minister is satisfied that the permit holder, given the change in permit operator, is likely to—

“(i) comply with, and give proper effect to, the work programme for the permit; and

“(ii) comply with the relevant obligations under the Act or the regulations in respect of reporting and the payment of fees and royalties; and

“(b) if the change of operator relates to a Tier 1 permit for exploration or mining, if the Health and Safety Regulator—

“(i) is satisfied that any requirements of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992, or regulations made under that Act, that the proposed operator must meet before carrying out day-to-day management of activities under the permit have been met; and.

“(ii) has advised the chief executive that it is so satisfied.

“(4) In addition to subsection (3), in the case of an application for a change of permit operator for a Tier 1 permit for mining, the Minister must be satisfied of the matters specified in section 29A(2)(c) that apply to Tier 1 permits for exploration.
“41D General provisions relating to transfers ~~and dealings~~, dealings, and changes of permit operator

“(1) The Minister may grant consent under section 41, 41B, or 41C, subject to any condition that the Minister thinks fit.

“(2) All conditions of the Minister’s consent are, for the purposes of this Act, deemed to be conditions of the permit concerned.

“(3) If, as a result of the transfer of an a participating interest in a permit ~~or a change of permit operator for a permit~~, a person ceases to have an interest in the permit, that person ceases to have any rights or obligations under the permit except in respect of any contravention of the conditions of the permit that occurred before the date of transfer of the participating interest ~~or change of permit operator~~.

“(4) Subsection (3) is subject to—

“(a) the conditions of the permit; and

~~“(b) any agreement that transfers an interest in the permit or changes the permit operator; and~~

“(c) the conditions of the Minister's consent, on the transfer of the ~~permit or the change of permit operator~~ participating interest.”

28A Section 42A amended (Authorisation of geophysical surveys on adjacent land)

In section 42A(2), after “were a”, insert “prospecting”.

28B Section 43 amended (Work programmes to be approved by Minister)

(1) Replace section 43(1) with:
- “(1) Where an application is made for a permit and the applicant has a right to receive the permit under section 32, the Minister must not grant the permit unless he or she has approved the work programme for the permit.”
(2) In section 43(2)(b)(i) and (3)(b)(i), replace “recognised good exploration or mining” with “good industry”.

28C Section 44 amended (Duty of Minister withholding approval of work programme)

In section 44(3) and (4), replace “recognised good exploration or mining” with “good industry”.

28D Section 46 amended (Unit development)

After section 46(4), insert:
- “(5) The Minister may recover from permit or existing privilege holders any costs incurred by him or her in approving or preparing a development scheme under this section, including the costs of any advice received from an independent expert, and may apportion those costs between the holders as he or she thinks fit.
- “(6) Subsection (7) applies if a development scheme is required under subsection (1) for a petroleum mineral deposit.
- “(7) The Minister may, by notice in writing, require 1 or more relevant permit or existing privilege holders to suspend or reduce production from any well specified in the notice during the preparation of the development scheme if—
  
  “(a) the Minister is satisfied that the suspension or reduction is necessary to prevent waste of the petroleum; and
  
  “(b) before issuing the notice, he or she has consulted all relevant permit or existing privilege holders.
- “(8) In subsection (7), relevant permit or existing privilege holder means a permit or existing privilege holder whose permit or existing privilege comprises any part of the land to which the petroleum mineral deposit relates.”

29 Section 53 amended (Access to land for petroleum)

Replace section 53(3) with:
- “(3) Subsection (2) does not apply if the permit relates to—
  
  “(a) land in the continental shelf, as defined in section 2(1) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964; or
  
  “(b) land in the common marine and coastal area, but if the permit relates to land described in Schedule 4, the permit holder may exercise the permit only—
  
  “(i) in respect of land that is not subject to a customary marine title order or agreement; and
  
  “(ii) in accordance with an access arrangement agreed in writing between the permit holder, the Minister, and the appropriate Minister in relation to an activity set out in section 61(1A)(a) to (e).”

30 Section 54 amended (Access to land for minerals other than petroleum)

Replace section 54(3) with:
- “(3) Subsection (2) does not apply if the permit relates to—
  
  “(a) land in the continental shelf, as defined in section 2(1) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964; or
  
  “(b) land in the common marine and coastal area, but if the permit relates to land described in Schedule 4, the permit holder may exercise the permit only—
  
  “(i) in respect of land that is not subject to a customary marine title order or agreement; and
  
  “(ii) in accordance with an access arrangement agreed in writing between the permit holder and the appropriate Minister in relation to an activity set out in section 61(1A)(a) to (e).”

31 Section 61 amended (Access arrangements in respect of Crown land and land in common marine and coastal area)

~~(1) In section 61(1), after “The”, insert “Minister and the”.~~
(1) Replace section 61(1) with:
- “(1) The appropriate Minister may, by agreement, enter into the following arrangements in respect of Crown land or, subject to sections 53(3) and 54(3), the common marine and coastal area:
  
  “(a) an initial access arrangement in relation to a Tier 2 permit:
  
  “(b) a variation to an existing access arrangement in relation to a Tier 2 permit:
  
  “(c) a variation to an existing access arrangement in relation to a Tier 1 permit, except if the variation is to allow access for the purpose of significant exploration or mining activities.
- “(1AA) The Minister and the appropriate Minister may, by agreement, enter into the following arrangements in respect of Crown land or, subject to sections 53(3) and 54(3), the common marine and coastal area:
  
  “(a) an initial access arrangement in relation to a Tier 1 permit:
  
  “(b) a variation to an existing access arrangement in relation to a Tier 1 permit if the variation is to allow access for the purpose of significant exploration or mining activities.
- “(1AAB) The appropriate Minister must determine whether or not activities are significant exploration or mining activities for the purposes of this section and, in doing so, must have regard to—
  
  “(a) the effects the activities are likely to have on conservation values for the land concerned; and
  
  “(b) the effects the activities are likely to have on other activities on the land; and
  
  “(c) the activities' net impact on the land, either while the activities are taking place or after their completion; and
  
  “(d) any other matters that the appropriate Minister considers relevant to achieving the purpose of this Act.”
~~(2) In section 61(1A), after “The”, insert “Minister and the”.~~

(2) In section 61(1A), after “Conservation”, insert “, or the Minister and the Minister of Conservation, as the case may be,”.

(2A) In section 61(1A), replace “or enter into any access arrangement” with “, or variation to an access arrangement, or enter into any access arrangement, or variation to an access arrangement,”.

(3) In section 61(1A), delete “(as defined in section 4 of the Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone Act 1977)”.

(3A) In section 61(1A)(d), replace “of the Crown Minerals Act 1991” with “or 98A”.
(4) Replace section 61(1A)(e) with:
- “(e) any special purpose mining activity carried out in accordance with a ~~special purpose~~ mining permit.”
~~(5) In section 61(2), after “Crown land,”, insert “the Minister and”.~~

(5) In section 61(2), after “access arrangement”, insert “, or variation to an access arrangement,”.

(5A) In section 61(2), after “appropriate Minister”, insert “, or the Minister and the appropriate Minister, as the case may be,”.
(6) After section 61(2)(d), insert:
- “(da) the direct net economic and other benefits of the proposed activity in relation to which the access arrangement is sought; and
- “(db) if section 61C(3) applies, the recommendation of the Director-General of Conservation and summary referred to in that subsection; and”.
~~(7) In section 61(2)(e), replace “appropriate Minister considers” with “Minister and the appropriate Minister consider”.~~

(7) In section 61(2)(e), after “considers”, insert “, or the Minister and the appropriate Minister, as the case may be, consider”.

(8) In section 61(4), replace “subsections (6) and (7)” with “subsections (6) to (9)”.

(8A) In section 61(6)(b), after “Crown”, insert “owned”.
(9) After section 61(8), insert:
- “(9) No Order in Council may be made under subsection (4) that results in land described, or within a category of land described, in clauses 1 to 8 of Schedule 4 of this Act being excluded from that schedule.”

32 New section 61C inserted (Access arrangements in respect of mining where Minister of Conservation is appropriate Minister) (Public notification of certain access arrangements)

After section 61B, insert:
“61C ~~Access arrangements in respect of mining where Minister of Conservation is appropriate Minister~~ Public notification of certain access arrangements

“(1) This section applies if an application under section 61 is made for an access arrangement in respect of Crown land for which the Minister of Conservation is the appropriate Minister and the purpose of access is to allow ~~significant~~ mining activities.

“(2) ~~When determining whether proposed mining activities specified in the application are significant mining activities, the Minister and the Minister of Conservation~~ The Minister of Conservation must determine whether or not the proposed activities are significant mining activities and, in doing so, must have regard to—

“(a) the effects the activities are likely to have on conservation values for the land concerned; and

“(b) the effects the activities are likely to have on other activities on the land; and

“(c) the activities' net impact on the land, either while the activities are taking place or after their completion; and

“(d) any other matters that the ~~Ministers consider~~ Minister considers relevant to achieving the purpose of this Act.

“(3) If the Minister of Conservation determines the proposed mining activities ~~specified in the application are determined~~ to be significant mining activities,—

“(a) ~~the Minister of Conservation~~ he or she must ensure that the application is publicly notified in accordance with section 49 of the Conservation Act 1987 as if the application were required to be publicly notified under that Act; and

“(b) section 49 of that Act applies with the necessary modifications; and

“(c) the Director-General of Conservation must perform the duties required by that section as if the application were a proposal, including sending a recommendation and summary of objections and comments received to the Minister of Conservation and, if the application relates to a matter to which section 61(1AA) applies, to the Minister.

“(4) The public notification of an application in accordance with subsection (3) may (without limitation) be conducted in conjunction with the public notification of any related concession application under the Conservation Act 1987.

“(5) Once the public notification requirements have been complied with, the Minister and the Minister of Conservation must jointly have regard to the matters specified in section 61(2) before the application is decided.”

33 Cross-heading above section 90 replaced

~~Replace the cross-heading above section 90 with:~~

~~“Registers, records, and use of information”.~~

34 Section 90 amended (Reports to Secretary)

~~(1) In section 90(1), replace “regulations in force under this Act” with “the conditions of the permit and the regulations”.~~

~~(2) Repeal section 90(3).~~

~~(3) In section 90(4), replace “regulations made under this Act” with “the conditions of the permit and the regulations”.~~

~~(4) In section 90(4) and (5)(a), delete “certified”.~~
~~(5) After section 90(4), insert:~~
- ~~“(4A) Despite subsection (4), if a record or report is provided electronically, it is sufficient if 1 hard copy is provided to the chief executive under that subsection.”~~
~~(6) Replace section 90(6) with:~~
- “(6) When all or part of a permit is relinquished under section 35B or 35C or surrendered under section 40, the permit holder must provide to the chief executive separate copies of all geological, geophysical, and other reports previously provided to, or requested by, the chief executive under subsections (1) and (4), or under subsection (5), showing, separately, details in respect of the area of land in respect of which the relinquishment or surrender occurred.
- “(6A) If a permit is revoked or transferred to the Minister under section 39, the person who (immediately before the permit was revoked or transferred) was the permit holder must provide to the chief executive any report, document, or other information as required by the regulations.”
~~(7) In section 90(7), after “subsections (1) and (4)”, insert “, or (5),”.~~

~~(8) In section 90(8), insert “, or (5),” after “subsections (1) and (4)”.~~
~~(9) Replace section 90(8A) with:~~
- “(8A) All information provided under subsections (1) and (4), or (5), to the Secretary by a non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder that is determined to be a speculative prospector under section 90B is available to any person who requests it on or after the expiry of 15 years after the date on which the information was supplied by the permit holder.
- ~~“(8B) Subsection (8) does not apply to any information that is made available under subsection (8A).~~
- “(8C) Until information supplied under this section is required to be made available to any person who so requests under subsection (7), (8), or (8A), the Minister, the Secretary, or any enforcement officer may use any such information for the purpose of exercising any power or performing any function conferred on the Minister, the Secretary, or the enforcement officer under this Act.”
~~(10) After section 90(8C), insert:~~
- ~~“(8D) Section 90AA applies to any information that, because of its use in accordance with subsection (8C), is disclosed.”~~

35 New section 90AA inserted (Disclosure of information)

~~After section 90, insert:~~
~~“90AA Disclosure of information~~

~~“(1) The Minister, the chief executive, or any enforcement officer must not disclose any information provided under section 23B, 24, 32, 35, 35A, 36, 41, 41A, 41B, 41C, or 90 unless—~~

“(a) the disclosure is for the purposes of, or in connection with, the performance or exercise of any function, duty, or power conferred or imposed by this Act on the Minister, the chief executive, or any enforcement officer; or

~~“(b) the information is publicly available; or~~

~~“(c) the disclosure is with the consent of the person to whom the information relates, or to whom the information is confidential; or~~

~~“(d) the disclosure is in connection with proceedings, or any investigation or inquiry for proceedings, for an offence against this Act or any other enactment; or~~

~~“(e) disclosure is required by another enactment; or~~

~~“(f) disclosure is required by a court of competent jurisdiction; or~~

~~“(g) the information is disclosed to a regulatory agency under section 90D.~~

“(2) Any information that is disclosed under subsection (1)(a) for the purposes of, or in connection with, the Minister's function of attracting permit applications under section 5(a) must be disclosed only to external advisers.

~~“(3) All disclosures that are made under subsection (1)(a) to an external adviser must be made on a confidential basis.”~~

36 Section 90A replaced (Disclosure of petroleum reserves and production information to Secretary and publication by Secretary)

~~Replace section 90A with:~~
~~“90A Disclosure and publication of mineral reserves and mineral production information~~

“(1) Every holder of a permit must provide to the chief executive all information in connection with mineral reserves and mineral production that is prescribed as information that must be provided under this section.

~~“(2) The information must be provided in accordance with the regulations.~~

~~“(3) The chief executive may, in accordance with the regulations, publish all, or any part, of the information provided under this section.~~

~~“(4) For the purposes of this section, holder of a permit includes every person who is a holder of an existing privilege.”~~

37 New sections 90B and 90C inserted

~~After section 90A, insert:~~
~~“90B Provisions relating to speculative prospectors~~

“(1) A non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder or an applicant for a petroleum prospecting permit may apply to the Minister for a determination that the holder is a speculative prospector.

~~“(2) If the Minister is satisfied that an applicant is a speculative prospector, the Minister must give that applicant speculative prospector status.~~

“(3) If the permit holder subsequently becomes aware that the holder no longer falls within the definition of a speculative prospector, the holder must notify the Minister as soon as practicable and in any case not later than 10 working days after the date on which the holder becomes aware of that fact.

“(4) If the Minister, having previously determined that the permit holder is a speculative prospector, subsequently considers that the permit holder's business activities are not consistent with those of a speculative prospector (for example, because the holder is providing or selling data on an exclusive basis to 1 petroleum explorer), the Minister may, by notice in writing to the permit holder, remove the permit holder's status as a speculative prospector.

~~“(5) Before removing the permit holder's status under subsection (4), the Minister must—~~

~~“(a) inform the permit holder of his or her intention and provide an opportunity for the permit holder to comment; and~~

~~“(b) consider any representations made by the permit holder.~~

~~“(6) If the Minister removes the permit holder's status as a speculative prospector, section 90(7) applies in relation to all records and reports provided by the permit holder to the Secretary.~~

“(7) If the Minister determines, within 90 days after the day on which this section comes into force, that a non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder or an applicant for a petroleum prospecting permit is a speculative prospector, section 90(8A) to (8C) apply to all information provided by the speculative prospector under section 90 on or after 1 October 2012.

“(8) In this section and section 90C, speculative prospector means a non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder or an applicant for a petroleum prospecting permit who acquires, or proposes to acquire, seismic and related information under the permit for the sole purpose of on-selling it on a non-exclusive basis to petroleum explorers and producers.
~~“90C Speculative prospecting information provided by holder of exploration or mining permit for petroleum~~

“(1) Section 90(8A) is deemed to apply in relation to all information provided to the Secretary by the holder of an exploration permit for petroleum or a mining permit for petroleum (the specified holder) under section 90 if—

“(a) the information was first provided to the specified holder by a speculative prospector and that information is subject to a restricted non-transferable data user licence or similar arrangement between the specified holder and the speculative prospector; and

~~“(b) section 90(8A) would apply to that information if it was provided to the Secretary by a speculative prospector under section 90; and~~

~~“(c) the Secretary determines that the conditions in subsection (2) are met.~~

~~“(2) The conditions are that—~~

~~“(a) the specified holder requests, by notice in writing to the Secretary, that the 15-year release period apply to the information; and~~

~~“(b) the request is received by the Secretary at least 90 days before the information would otherwise be made publicly available under section 90; and~~

~~“(c) the specified holder—~~

~~“(i) clearly identifies the information that is subject to a restricted non-transferable data user licence or similar arrangement; and~~

~~“(ii) provides evidence that the information is subject to a restricted non-transferable data user licence or similar arrangement.”~~

38 New sections 90D and 90E inserted

~~After section 90C, insert:~~
~~“90D Providing information to regulatory agencies~~

“(1) The Minister, an appropriate Minister, or the chief executive may provide to the department that is, with the authority of the Prime Minister, for the time being responsible for the administration of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 any information, or a copy of any document, that he or she—

~~“(a) holds in relation to the performance or exercise of his or her functions, duties, or powers under this Act that relate to a permit or an application for a permit; and~~

“(b) considers may assist the chief executive of that department in the performance or exercise of his or her or the department's functions, duties, or powers under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992.

~~“(2) The Minister, an appropriate Minister, or the chief executive may provide to Maritime New Zealand any information, or a copy of any document, that he or she—~~

~~“(a) holds in relation to the performance or exercise of his or her functions, duties, or powers under this Act that relate to a permit or an application for a permit; and~~

“(b) considers may assist the Director of Maritime New Zealand in the performance or exercise of his or her or Maritime New Zealand's functions, duties, or powers under the Maritime Transport Act 1994.

“(3) The Minister may provide to the Environmental Protection Authority (established by section 7 of the Environmental Protection Authority Act 2011) and to any consent authority (as defined in section 2(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991) any information, or a copy of any document, that the Minister—

~~“(a) holds in relation to the matters referred to in section 29A(2)(c); and~~

~~“(b) considers may assist—~~

“(i) the Environmental Protection Authority in the performance or exercise of its functions, duties, or powers under the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012 or the Resource Management Act 1991; or

~~“(ii) a consent authority in the performance or exercise of its functions, duties, or powers under the Resource Management Act 1991.~~

~~“(4) However, subsections (1) to (3) do not apply to any information obtained under section 90 relating to the calculation and payment of royalties by permit holders.~~

~~“(5) A regulatory agency must not disclose any information provided to it under this section to any other person or organisation unless—~~

~~“(a) the disclosure is for the purposes of, or in connection with, the performance or exercise of any function, power, or duty conferred or imposed by a specified Act on a regulatory agency; or~~

~~“(b) the information is publicly available; or~~

~~“(c) the disclosure is with the consent of the person to whom the information relates, or to whom the information is confidential; or~~

~~“(d) the disclosure is in connection with proceedings, or any investigation or inquiry for proceedings, for an offence against this Act or any other enactment; or~~

~~“(e) disclosure is required by another enactment; or~~

~~“(f) disclosure is required by a court of competent jurisdiction.~~
~~“90E Conditions that may be imposed on providing information or documents under section 90D~~

“(1) A person providing information or documents under section 90D(1), (2), or (3) may impose any conditions in relation to the provision of the information or documents, whether in compliance with a request or otherwise.

~~“(2) The conditions imposed under this section may include (without limitation) conditions relating to—~~

~~“(a) the storing of, use of, or access to anything provided:~~

~~“(b) the copying, returning, or disposing of copies of documents provided.”~~

38 Sections 90 and 90A and cross-heading to section 90 replaced

Replace sections 90 and 90A and cross-heading to section 90 with:
“Registers, records, and use of information
“90 Permit holder records and reports

“(1) Each permit holder must keep detailed records and reports in respect of all prospecting, exploration, and mining activities conducted by or on behalf of the permit holder—

“(a) in accordance with the conditions of the permit and the regulations; and

“(b) in a form that is readily accessible at all reasonable times by the chief executive or any person authorised in writing by the chief executive.

“(2) Each permit holder must provide to the chief executive, in accordance with the conditions of the permit and the regulations, a copy of the records and reports required to be kept under subsection (1) and, on the expiry of whichever of the periods referred to in subsection (6) first occurs, the chief executive must send a copy of those records and reports to the person designated by the Minister for the purposes of this subsection.

“(3) If requested by the chief executive to do so, a permit holder must provide to the chief executive—

“(a) a copy of any report made by or for the permit holder in respect of any activities under the permit:

“(b) a report on any specified aspect of the permit holder's activities under the permit.

“(4) When part of a permit is relinquished under section 35B or 35C or surrendered under section 40, the permit holder must provide to the chief executive separate copies of all geological, geophysical, and other reports previously provided to, or requested by, the chief executive under subsections (1) to (3), showing, separately, details in respect of the area of land in respect of which the relinquishment or surrender occurred.

“(5) If a permit is revoked or transferred to the Minister under section 39, the person who (immediately before the permit was revoked or transferred) was the permit holder must provide to the chief executive any report, document, or other information as required by the regulations.

“(6) The information supplied by a permit holder under subsections (1) to (3), other than information in relation to permits specified in subsection (7), must be made available to any person who requests it, on the payment of a reasonable charge for the costs incurred in making the information available, on and from the earliest of the following events:

“(a) the expiry of 5 years from the date on which the information was obtained by the permit holder:

“(b) the cessation of the permit and every subsequent permit in respect of that permit (in so far as the information relates to land covered by both the initial and any subsequent permit):

“(c) if the permit holder surrenders the permit and is concurrently granted (under section 36(2)(b)) an extension of land for an equivalent permit and the extension includes land to which the surrendered permit applied, the cessation of the extended permit and every subsequent permit in respect of the extended permit (in so far as the information relates to land covered by the surrendered permit, the extended permit, and any subsequent permit in respect of the extended permit).

“(7) The information supplied by a permit holder under subsections (1) to (3) in respect of a prospecting permit for petroleum, or a non-exclusive prospecting permit for a mineral other than petroleum, must be made available to any person who requests it, on the payment of a reasonable charge for the costs incurred in making the information available, on and from the earlier of the following events:

“(a) the expiry of 15 years from the date on which the information was obtained by the permit holder:

“(b) the conclusion of a public tender process to the extent that the information relates to land to which the public tender relates, except if the public tender process concludes earlier than 5 years from the date on which the information was obtained by the permit holder, in which case, the expiry of the 5 years.

“(8) Despite subsection (7), all information provided under subsections (1) to (3) to the chief executive by a non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder who is determined to be a speculative prospector under section 90C is available to any person who requests it on or after the expiry of 15 years after the date on which the information was obtained by the permit holder.

“(9) The Minister, the chief executive, or an enforcement officer may use information supplied under this section at any time before or after the information is required to be made available under any of subsections (6) to (8) for the purpose of exercising any power or performing any function conferred on the person by or under this Act.

“(10) Section 90A applies to any information that, because of its use in accordance with subsection (9), is disclosed.

“(11) Nothing in this section requires the chief executive to send or make available any records, reports, information, or returns relating to the calculation and payment of royalties by permit holders.

“(12) This section applies to every record, report, and other material held or provided by the holder of a licence issued under any previous enactment in respect of any mineral as if the licence holder were a permit holder.
“90A Disclosure of information

“(1) The Minister, an appropriate Minister, the chief executive, or any enforcement officer must not disclose any information provided under or for the purposes of any of sections 23B, 24, 32, 35, 35A, 36, 41, 41A, 41B, 41C, 61B, 61C, 90, and 99E unless—

“(a) the disclosure is for the purposes of, or in connection with, the performance or exercise of any function, duty, or power conferred or imposed by or under this Act on the Minister, the chief executive, or any enforcement officer; or

“(b) the information is publicly available; or

“(c) the disclosure is with the consent of the person to whom the information relates, or to whom the information is confidential; or

“(d) the disclosure is in connection with proceedings, or any investigation or inquiry for proceedings, for an offence against this Act or any other enactment; or

“(e) disclosure is required by another enactment; or

“(f) disclosure is required by a court of competent jurisdiction; or

“(g) the information is disclosed to a regulatory agency under section 90E.

“(2) Any information that is disclosed under subsection (1)(a) for the purposes of, or in connection with, the Minister's function of attracting permit applications under section 5(a) must be disclosed only to external advisers to the Minister.

“(3) All disclosures that are made under subsection (1)(a) to an external adviser to the Minister must be made on a confidential basis.
“90B Disclosure and publication of mineral reserves and mineral production information

“(1) Every holder of a permit must provide to the chief executive all information in connection with mineral reserves and mineral production that is prescribed as information that must be provided under this section.

“(2) The information must be provided in accordance with the regulations.

“(3) The chief executive may, in accordance with the regulations, publish all, or any part, of the information provided under this section.

“(4) For the purposes of this section, holder of a permit includes every person who is a holder of an existing privilege.
“90C Provisions relating to speculative prospectors

“(1) A non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder may apply to the Minister for a determination that the holder is a speculative prospector and, if the Minister is satisfied that the holder is a speculative prospector, the Minister must confer that status on the permit holder effective from the date of conferral.

“(2) An applicant for a non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit may, at the same time as applying for the permit, apply to the Minister for a determination that, if granted a permit, the applicant will be a speculative prospector and, if the Minister is satisfied that the applicant will be a speculative prospector, the Minister must confer that status on the applicant, effective from the date the permit is granted, if the Minister grants the permit application.

“(3) If a permit holder with speculative prospector status subsequently becomes aware that the holder no longer falls within the definition of a speculative prospector, the holder must notify the Minister as soon as practicable and in any case not later than 10 working days after the date on which the holder becomes aware of that fact.

“(4) If the Minister, having previously determined that a permit holder is a speculative prospector, subsequently considers that the permit holder's business activities are not consistent with those of a speculative prospector (for example, because the holder is providing or selling data on an exclusive basis to 1 petroleum explorer), the Minister may, by notice in writing to the permit holder, remove the permit holder's status as a speculative prospector.

“(5) Before removing a permit holder's status under subsection (4), the Minister must—

“(a) inform the permit holder of his or her intention and provide an opportunity for the permit holder to comment; and

“(b) consider any representations made by the permit holder.

“(6) If a permit holder notifies the Minister under subsection (3) or the Minister removes a permit holder's status as a speculative prospector under subsection (4), section 90(7) applies in relation to all records and reports provided by the permit holder to the chief executive, irrespective of whether the records and reports were obtained before or after the loss or removal of status.

“(7) In this Act, speculative prospector means a non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder who carries out activities under the permit for the sole purpose of on-selling the information obtained on a non-exclusive basis to petroleum explorers and producers.
“90D Treatment of speculative prospecting information purchased or licensed by permit holder

“(1) If a permit holder purchases or licenses information from a speculative prospector, for the purposes of section 90, the information must be treated as records or reports in respect of activities conducted by or on behalf of the permit holder.

“(2) However, when providing the information to the chief executive under section 90(2), the permit holder must clearly identify that the information was obtained by a speculative prospector.

“(3) Despite section 90(6) and (7), information to which this section applies must be made available to any person who requests it on or after the expiry of 15 years after the date on which the information was obtained by the speculative prospector.

“(4) A permit holder must, if requested to do so, provide evidence to satisfy the chief executive that any information supplied to him or her by the permit holder under section 90 was purchased or licensed information from a speculative prospector.
“90E Providing information to regulatory agencies

“(1) The Minister, an appropriate Minister, or the chief executive may provide to the Health and Safety Regulator any information, or a copy of any document, that he or she—

“(a) holds in relation to the performance or exercise of his or her functions, duties, or powers under this Act that relate to a permit or an application for a permit; and

“(b) considers may assist the Health and Safety Regulator's chief executive in the performance or exercise of his or her functions, duties, or powers under the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992.

“(2) The Minister, an appropriate Minister, or the chief executive may provide to Maritime New Zealand any information, or a copy of any document, that he or she—

“(a) holds in relation to the performance or exercise of his or her functions, duties, or powers under this Act that relate to a permit or an application for a permit; and

“(b) considers may assist the Director of Maritime New Zealand in the performance or exercise of his or her or Maritime New Zealand's functions, duties, or powers under the Maritime Transport Act 1994.

“(3) The Minister may provide to the Environmental Protection Authority (established by section 7 of the Environmental Protection Authority Act 2011) and to any consent authority any information, or a copy of any document, that the Minister—

“(a) holds in relation to the matters referred to in section 29A(2)(c); and

“(b) considers may assist—

“(i) the Environmental Protection Authority in the performance or exercise of its functions, duties, or powers under the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012 or the Resource Management Act 1991; or

“(ii) a consent authority in the performance or exercise of its functions, duties, or powers under the Resource Management Act 1991.

“(4) However, subsections (1) to (3) do not apply to any information obtained under section 90 relating to the calculation and payment of royalties by permit holders.

“(5) A regulatory agency must not disclose any information provided to it under this section to any other person or organisation unless—

“(a) the disclosure is for the purposes of, or in connection with, the performance or exercise of any function, power, or duty conferred or imposed by a specified Act on the regulatory agency; or

“(b) the information is publicly available; or

“(c) the disclosure is with the consent of the person to whom the information relates, or to whom the information is confidential; or

“(d) the disclosure is in connection with proceedings, or any investigation or inquiry for proceedings, for an offence against this Act or any other enactment; or

“(e) disclosure is required by another enactment; or

“(f) disclosure is required by a court of competent jurisdiction.
“90F Conditions that may be imposed on providing information or documents under section 90E

“(1) A person providing information or documents under section 90E(1), (2), or (3) may impose any conditions in relation to the provision of the information or documents, whether in compliance with a request or otherwise.

“(2) The conditions imposed under this section may include (without limitation) conditions relating to—

“(a) the storing of, use of, or access to anything provided:

“(b) the copying, returning, or disposing of copies of documents provided.
“90G Regulatory agency may provide information for purposes of this Act

“(1) A regulatory agency may provide to a recipient specified in subsection (2) any information or a copy of any document that it believes would assist the recipient in the performance or exercise of the recipient's functions, duties, or powers under this Act.

“(2) The recipients are—

“(a) the Minister:

“(b) an appropriate Minister:

“(c) the chief executive:

“(d) an enforcement officer.

“(3) A regulatory agency may provide to another regulatory agency any information or a copy of any document that it believes would assist that other agency in the performance or exercise of its functions, duties, or powers under a specified Act that relate to activities under or associated with a permit.

“(4) A person or an agency that receives information provided under this section must not disclose the information to any other person or organisation unless—

“(a) the disclosure is made for the purposes of, or in connection with, the performance or exercise of any function, power, or duty conferred or imposed by this Act or a specified Act on the person or agency; or

“(b) the information is publicly available; or

“(c) the disclosure is made with the consent of the person to whom the information relates or to whom the information is confidential; or

“(d) the disclosure is made in connection with proceedings, or any investigation or inquiry for proceedings, for an offence against this Act or any other enactment; or

“(e) the disclosure is required by another enactment; or

“(f) the disclosure is required by a court of competent jurisdiction.”

39 Section 91 amended (Secretary to keep registers)

Replace section ~~91(2)~~ 91(1) and (2) with:
- “(1) The chief executive must keep a register of permits in the form that he or she thinks fit on which is entered brief particulars of all permits, including, in respect of each permit, the name and contact details of the permit participants, the name and contact details of the permit operator, and any changes, transfers, or leases of the permit.
- “(2) The chief executive must ensure that the following information is available for public inspection on an Internet site maintained by or on behalf of the chief executive:
  
  “(a) a copy of every permit granted under this Act and all changes to a permit; and
  
  “(b) the register (or a copy of the register) kept under subsection (1); and
  
  “(c) any other prescribed documents ~~prescribed by regulations~~.”

40 Section 92 amended (Permits are not real or personal property)

(1) Replace section 92(2)(a) with:
- “(a) on the death of a permit participant, his or her participating interest vests in the personal representative of the permit participant as if the participating interest were personal property, and the personal representative may deal with the participating interest to the same extent as the permit participant would have been able to; and”.
(1A) In section 92(2)(c), after “1988”, insert “; and”.
(1B) After section 92(2)(c), insert:
- “(d) a permit is personal property for the purposes of the Personal Property Securities Act 1999.”
(2) After section 92(3), insert:
- “(4) In the case of a participating interest to which subsection (2)(a) applies, the participating interest must be treated as property for the purposes of the distribution of the permit participant's estate and the permit participant's personal representative may transfer the participating interest to a beneficiary of the permit participant's estate without obtaining consent under section 41.”

41 New section 92A inserted (Effect of liquidation or loss of registration of company)

After section 92, insert:
“92A Effect of liquidation or loss of registration of company

“(1) On the liquidation of a permit participant, its participating interest vests in the liquidator as if it were personal property, and the liquidator may deal with the participating interest to the same extent as the permit participant would have been able to.

“(2) On the removal of a permit participant from the New Zealand register under the Companies Act 1993, all participating interests held by the permit participant company vest in the Crown as if they were personal property.”

41A Section 95 amended (Address for service)

(1) In section 95(1), replace “of an” with “of a physical”.

(2) In section 95(1), after “different”, insert “physical”.
(3) After subsection (2), insert:
- “(3) Every permit participant must give written notice to the chief executive of an address (which may be an email address) and telephone number at which the permit participant can be contacted.
- “(4) A permit participant must give written notice to the chief executive of any change to the address or telephone number provided under subsection (3) as soon as reasonably practicable, but no later than 10 working days after the change takes effect.”

41B Section 97 amended

In section 97(4)(b), after “payments outstanding”, insert “(including interest payable under section 99I)”.

42 Section 98 amended (Gold fossicking areas)

In the heading to section 98, after “areas”, insert “(Crown land)”.

43 New section 98A inserted (Gold fossicking areas (other land))

After section 98, insert:
“98A Gold fossicking areas (other land)

“(1) The Minister may, by notice in the Gazette given on the request of a local authority ~~or unitary authority (as defined in section 5(1) of the Local Government Act 2002)~~, designate any land owned by the authority as a gold fossicking area.

“(2) The notice must—

“(a) state that the area is open for public fossicking in respect of gold; and

“(b) specify the area and its general location; and

“(c) state that a person has the right to mine for gold in the area by means only of non-motorised hand held tools; and

“(d) state any other terms or conditions that apply when a person is fossicking in the area (as agreed between the Minister and the owner of the land).

“(3) The Minister must revoke a designation made under subsection (1) if requested to do so by the ~~owner of the land to which the designation applies~~ authority.”

44 New sections 99A to 99K 99L and cross-headings inserted

After section 99, insert:
“Provisions relating to enforcement officers, auditing, and requiring information
“99A Appointment of enforcement officers

“(1) The chief executive may appoint 1 or more persons who are employees of a government department, a Crown entity, or a local authority ~~(as defined in section 5(1) of the Local Government Act 2002)~~ to exercise 1 or more of the powers and perform the functions conferred on enforcement officers under this Act.

“(2) The chief executive must supply each enforcement officer with a warrant of authorisation that clearly states the powers and functions of the officer.

“(3) An enforcement officer who exercises, or purports to exercise, a power conferred on the enforcement officer under this Act must carry and produce, if required to do so,—

“(a) his or her warrant of authorisation; and

“(b) evidence of his or her identity.

“(4) An enforcement officer must, on the termination of the enforcement officer's appointment, surrender his or her warrant to the chief executive.
“99B Powers of enforcement officers

~~“(1) Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (other than sections 118 and 119) applies, with any necessary modifications, in respect of searches undertaken under this Act.~~

“(2) Any enforcement officer, specifically authorised in writing by the Minister to do so, may at all reasonable times go on, into, under, or over any place or structure, except a dwelling house or marae, for the purpose of determining whether a permit, this Act, or the regulations are being complied with.

“(3) If the owner or occupier of a place subject to inspection is not present at the time of the inspection, the enforcement officer must leave in a prominent position at the place, or attached to ~~the~~ a structure on the place, a written notice showing the date and time of the inspection and the name of the officer carrying out the inspection.

“(4) An enforcement officer may not enter, unless the permission of the landowner is obtained, any land that any other Act states may not be entered without that permission.

“(5) An enforcement officer who exercises the power of inspection under this section may be accompanied by any person or persons reasonably necessary to assist the enforcement officer with the inspection.

“(6) A person who provides assistance under subsection (5) may exercise the powers provided to enforcement officers under subsection (2).
“99C Application for warrant for entry to search

“(1) An issuing officer (within the meaning of section 3(1) of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012) may issue a warrant authorising the entry and search of any place or vehicle if, on an application made in the manner provided in subpart 3 of Part 4 of that Act, he or she is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing that there is in, on, under, or over any place or vehicle anything—

“(a) in respect of which an offence has been or is suspected of having been committed against this Act or the regulations; or

“(b) that will be evidence of an offence against this Act or the regulations; or

“(c) that is intended to be used for the purpose of committing an offence against this Act or the regulations.

“(2) An application may be made under subsection (1) by—

“(a) a constable; or

“(b) an enforcement officer specifically authorised in writing by the Minister to apply for search warrants.
“99CA Application of Part 4 of Search and Surveillance Act 2012

Part 4 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (other than sections 118 and 119) applies, with any necessary modifications, in respect of inspections or searches undertaken under this Act.
“99D Auditing

“(1) A person referred to in subsection (2) may carry out an audit of records, kept by or on behalf of the chief executive or a permit holder, for the purpose of obtaining information about the following matters and reporting that information to the chief executive:

“(aa) the calculation of mineral reserves by a permit holder undertaking mining activities:

“(a) the calculation and payment of the correct amount of royalties due by a permit holder:

“(b) the calculation and payment of any other money payable to the Crown:

“(c) compliance with any prescribed requirement to keep or provide records or other information.

“(2) The following persons may carry out an audit if directed by the chief executive:

“(a) an enforcement officer:

“(b) an independent auditor ~~approved~~ appointed by the chief executive.

“(3) If the chief executive requires an independent auditor to be appointed, the permit holder must pay the independent auditor's costs if required to do so by the chief executive.

“(4) However, the chief executive may require the payment of those costs only if the auditor has found material failures in relation to any calculations or payments or the keeping or providing of records or other information by the permit holder.
“99E Power to require information

“(1) The Minister, the chief executive, or any enforcement officer may, by written notice, require any person to provide any information that the person giving the notice considers is necessary for any purpose relating to that person’s functions, duties, or powers under this Act or for the administration or enforcement of this Act.

“(2) The information specified in the notice may relate to—

“(a) any aspect of the operation of a permit:

“(b) any commercial agreements or arrangements to which a permit participant is a party.

~~“(3) However, subsection (1) does not apply to information that must be provided to the chief executive in accordance with section 90.~~

“(4) Information may be disclosed to the Minister, the chief executive, or an enforcement officer in confidence if—

“(a) a person who is required to provide information under subsection (1) so requests; and

“(b) the Minister, chief executive, or enforcement officer agrees to that request in writing.

“(5) A person required to provide any information under this section must provide the information—

“(a) in the form and in the manner set out in the notice; and

“(b) within any reasonable time specified in the notice requiring the information; and

“(c) free of charge; and

“(d) regardless of whether the Minister, chief executive, or enforcement officer agrees to the information being disclosed in confidence.
“99F Protection of persons acting under authority of this Act

“(1) No enforcement officer or person called upon to assist an enforcement officer who does an act, or omits to do an act, when performing a function or exercising a power conferred on that person by or under this Act (other than when exercising powers of inspection or search under sections 99B and 99C) is under any civil or criminal liability in respect of the act or omission, unless the person has acted, or omitted to act, in bad faith.

“(2) Sections 166 and 167 of the Search and Surveillance Act 2012 apply in relation to persons exercising powers of inspection or search under sections 99B and 99C.
“Royalties and interest
“99G Royalties

~~“Every permit holder must submit royalty returns, and pay royalties, by the due date in accordance with the regulations.~~

“Every permit holder must—

“(a) submit royalty returns in accordance with the relevant permit, this Act, and the regulations; and

“(b) pay royalties in accordance with the relevant permit, this Act, and the regulations.
“99H Power to amend royalty returns or make default assessment

“(1) If the chief executive is satisfied that the information contained in a royalty return is incorrect, he or she may, at any time, amend the return and any assessment of the permit holder’s liability to pay money to the Crown (an amendment) as he or she thinks fit.

“(2) If a permit holder fails to submit a royalty return when required to do so under this Act, the regulations, or a permit, the chief executive may make an assessment (a default assessment) of the matters that should have been in the permit holder’s royalty return.

“(3) An amendment or a default assessment made under this section must be taken to be correct unless, on objection under section 99J or on appeal under section 99K, a different amendment or assessment is made.

“(4) As soon as practicable after making an amendment or a default assessment, the chief executive must notify the permit holder of—

“(a) the particulars of the amendment or default assessment; and

“(b) any grounds or information upon which the amendment or default assessment was based; and

“(c) the right of the ~~person~~ permit holder to object (as set out in section 99J).

~~“(5) If the amendment or default assessment results in the permit holder owing money to the Crown, the permit holder must—~~

~~“(a) pay the amount due within 20 working days after the date of the amendment or assessment; and~~

~~“(b) pay the amount owing even if the permit holder makes an objection under section 99J.~~

“(5) If an amendment or a default assessment results in the permit holder owing money to the Crown, the permit holder must pay the amount due within 20 working days after the date on which the permit holder is notified under subsection (4).

“(6) If ~~the~~ an amendment shows that a permit holder has overpaid the amount of royalties due, the chief executive must, within 20 working days after the date of the amendment, arrange for a refund to be paid to the permit holder.

“(7) Interest calculated at the Commissioner's paying rate, as defined in section 120C of the Tax Administration Act 1994, is payable on any amount refunded.
“99I Interest on unpaid money

“(1) If a permit holder does not fully pay, by the due date, all fees and other money payable by the holder to the Crown under this Act or the regulations (the original amount), the chief executive may make a written demand for the payment of interest on ~~so much~~ the part of the original amount that remains unpaid.

“(2) The permit holder is liable ~~to pay~~ for the interest payable and the interest must be calculated for every month or part of a month after the due date during which the original amount remains unpaid in full.

“(3) Interest must be calculated in accordance with the following formula:

a = b × c

12

where—

a

is the interest payable

b

is any part of the original amount that remains unpaid at the end of the month for which the interest is calculated

c

is the taxpayer's paying rate, as defined in section 120C of the Tax Administration Act 1994.

“(4) In the case of royalties where the amount payable was assessed or amended under section 99H, interest must be calculated from the date on which the amount of royalties was originally due.

“(5) Any payment the chief executive receives or applies on account of a permit holder’s liability to pay an original amount must first be applied towards payment of the interest.
“99J Right to object to amendment or default assessment

“(1) A permit holder may object to an amendment or a default assessment under section 99H.

“(2) An objection must be in writing and received by the chief executive not later than 20 40 working days after the ~~relevant amendment or default assessment is notified to the person affected by it~~ the date on which the permit holder is notified of the amendment or default assessment under section 99H(4).

“(3) The objection must set out the reasons for the objection.

“(4) The chief executive must—

“(a) give the ~~person who made the objection~~ permit holder an opportunity to be heard; and

“(b) consider and determine the objection within 20 40 working days after its receipt.

“(5) The chief executive must ~~either~~—

“(a) dismiss the objection; or

“(b) uphold the objection in whole or in part.

“(6) Not later than 20 working days after deciding an objection, the chief executive must send to the permit holder—

“(a) a copy of the decision, which must include the reasons for the decision; and

“(b) any amended royalty return or default assessment; and

“(c) notice of the right of the permit holder to appeal (as set out in section 99K).
“99K Right of appeal

“(1) ~~Any person~~ A permit holder who has made an objection under section 99J may, in accordance with the rules of court, appeal to a District Court against the chief executive's determination of the objection.

“(2) An appeal must be made not later than 20 working days after the date on which the permit holder is notified of the chief executive's decision under section 99J(6).

“(3) The District Court may confirm, reverse, or modify the decision and, if applicable,—

“(a) amend the relevant royalty return or default assessment; and

“(b) specify the amount of any money to be paid by the permit holder to the Crown or to be refunded to the permit holder, as the case may be.

“(4) A decision of a District Court under subsection (3) may be appealed to the High Court, but only if—

“(a) the ground of the appeal is that the decision is erroneous in point of law; or

“(b) the District Court has determined that an amount of money is payable to the Crown and the amount is more than $2,000.

“(5) To avoid doubt, an appeal may be taken under subsection (4) by the permit holder or the chief executive (on behalf of the Crown).
“99L Status of original amendment or default assessment

“(1) This section applies to an amendment or a default assessment made by the chief executive under section 99H if the permit holder concerned—

“(a) objects to the amendment or default assessment under section 99J; or

“(b) having made an objection, exercises 1 or more of the appeal rights under section 99K in respect of the determination of the objection.

“(2) If the amendment or default assessment results in the permit holder owing money to the Crown,—

“(a) the amendment or default assessment must be treated as correct and final until the permit holder has exhausted those rights or the time period by which the rights must be exercised has expired and a final decision has been given by the chief executive or a court, as the case may be (final decision); and

“(b) the permit holder must pay the money owing in accordance with section 99H(5).

“(3) If the final decision differs from the amendment or default assessment and—

“(a) a refund is required to be paid to the permit holder, section 99H(6) and (7) applies, with any necessary modifications:

“(b) a further amount is required to be paid by the permit holder, the permit holder must pay the amount to the chief executive within 20 working days after the date on which the final decision is made, including any interest calculated in accordance with section 99I.”

45 Section 100 amended (Offences)

(1A) In section 100(2)(a), replace “conditions and with this Act” with “holder responsibilities”.
(1) After section 100(3), insert:
- “(3A) A Every person commits an offence against this Act who knowingly provides altered, false, incomplete, or misleading information (including royalty returns) to the chief executive or any other person in respect of a matter or thing under this Act or the regulations.”

46 Section 101 amended (Penalties)

(1) In section 101(1),—
- (a) replace “$200,000” with “~~$300,000~~$400,000”; and
- (b) replace “$10,000” with “~~$15,000~~$20,000”.
(2) In section 101(2),—
- (a) replace “$10,000” with “~~$15,000~~$20,000”; and
- (b) replace “$1,000” with “~~$1,500~~$2,000”.
(3) In section 101(3), replace “$1,500” with “$3,000”.
(4) After section 101(3), insert:
- “(3A) Every person who commits an offence against section 100(3A) is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding ~~$600,000~~ $800,000.”

47 Section 104 amended (Recovery of fees and other money)

(1) In section 104(1), replace “Crown under this Part” with “Crown under this Act or the regulations”.

(2) In section 104(1), replace “granted under this Part, shall be” with “granted under this Act, ~~must~~ is”.
(3) Replace section 104(2) with:
- “(2) All fees payable under this Act or the regulations must be paid into a Departmental Bank Account, and all other money payable to the Crown under this Act, or the regulations, or under any permit granted under this Act, must be paid into a Crown Bank Account.
- “(3) To avoid doubt, any interest payable on fees must be paid into a Crown Bank Account.”

48 Section 105 amended (Regulations)

(1) Replace section 105(1)(a) with:
- “(a) prescribing the form or content of applications, permits, notices, reports, or any other documentation or information required under this Act, and the manner in which such documentation or information is to be provided:”.
(2) After section 105(1)(c), insert:
- “(ca) specifying for the purposes of section 33A the kind or class of permits for which an annual report of the permit holder's engagement with iwi affected by the permit must be provided to the Minister:
- “(cb) prescribing, in relation to iwi engagement reports required under section 33A, the manner in which the reports are to be provided, the periods to which the reports must apply, and the time by which the reports must be provided:”.
(3) In section 105(1), replace “Part” with “Act” in each place.

49 New section 105A inserted (Regulations relating to royalties) sections 105A to 105C inserted

After section 105, insert:
“105A Regulations relating to royalties

“(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, make regulations for ~~all or any~~ 1 or more of the following purposes:

“(a) prescribing how royalties are to be calculated, or the rate or rates for royalties:

“(b) prescribing thresholds that apply for the purpose of determining whether royalties are payable:

“(c) prescribing the due dates for royalty payments and lodging royalty returns.

“(2) The regulations may make different provisions for—

“(a) different minerals:

“(b) a mineral that occurs in different specified states, places, phases, or strata:

“(c) a mineral that is explored for or extracted by different specified methods.

“(3) If regulations made under this section are in force—

“(a) when an initial permit is granted in respect of a mineral, royalties must be calculated in accordance with the regulations as they apply at the time the permit is granted:

“(b) when a subsequent permit is granted in respect of the same mineral, royalties must also be calculated in accordance with the regulations as they applied at the time the initial permit was granted:

“(c) when a permit is changed to cover a different mineral, royalties in respect of that mineral must be calculated in accordance with the regulations as they apply when the relevant change to the permit takes effect.

“(4) No regulation made under this section is invalid because—

“(a) it authorises the Minister or any other person—

“(i) to give any consent or approval on or subject to conditions to be imposed or approved by the Minister or any other person; or

“(ii) to set any standard; or

“(iii) to determine any costs, value, or price for the purpose of assessing royalties payable in any case; or

“(b) it otherwise leaves any matter to the discretion of the Minister or any other person.
“105B Regulations may incorporate material by reference

“(1) Regulations made under section 105 or 105A may incorporate by reference 1 or more of the following:

“(a) financial reporting standards made under the Financial Reporting Act 1993, as those standards are defined in section 2(1) of that Act (financial reporting standards):

“(b) a standard, framework, code of practice, recommended practice, or requirement of an international organisation or a national organisation:

“(c) a standard, framework, code of practice, recommended practice, or requirement prescribed in any country or jurisdiction, or by any group of countries:

“(d) any other written material that deals with technical matters and that can reasonably be regarded as being too large or impractical to include in, or publish as part of, the regulations.

“(2) The material may be incorporated by reference in the regulations—

“(a) in whole or in part; and

“(b) with modifications, additions, or variations specified in the regulations.

“(3) The incorporated material—

“(a) is as that exists at the time that the regulations are made; and

“(b) forms part of the regulations for all purposes and has legal effect accordingly.

“(4) An amendment to, or replacement of, a financial reporting standard in regulations made under section 105 or 105A (the initial regulations) has legal effect as part of the initial regulations on and from the date on which the amendment or regulation takes effect and commences to apply under section 28 of the Financial Reporting Act 1993, if—

“(a) the amendment or replacement is made by the External Reporting Board in accordance with that Act; and

“(b) the amendment or replacement is of the same general character as the standard that is amended or replaced; and

“(c) the initial regulations state that amendments or replacements have this effect.

“(5) An amendment to, or replacement of, any other material in the initial regulations referred to in subsection (1) has legal effect as part of the initial regulations only if it is specifically incorporated by amendment regulations to the initial regulations.

“(6) A copy of material incorporated by reference in regulations made under section 105 or 105A, including any amendment to, or replacement of, the material, must be—

“(a) certified as a correct copy by the chief executive; and

“(b) retained by the chief executive.

“(7) The production in proceedings of a certified copy of the material incorporated by reference is, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, sufficient evidence of the incorporation in the regulations of the material.

“(8) Material incorporated by reference in regulations made under section 105 or 105A that expire or that are revoked or that cease to have effect ceases to have legal effect as part of the regulations only if regulations made under that section state that the material ceases to have legal effect.

“(9) The department responsible for the administration of this Act must—

“(a) provide electronic access to any material incorporated by reference in regulations made under this section, unless doing so would infringe copyright; and

“(b) make the material available for inspection during working hours, free of charge, at the department's head office and at any other place that the chief executive determines is appropriate.

“(10) A failure to comply with subsection (9) does not invalidate regulations that incorporate any material incorporated by reference in regulations made under section 105 or 105A.

“(11) The Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989 does not apply to—

“(a) material incorporated by reference in regulations made under section 105 or 105A; or

“(b) an amendment to, or replacement of, that material.

“(12) Nothing in section 4 of the Regulations (Disallowance) Act 1989 requires material that is incorporated by reference in regulations made under this section to be presented to the House of Representatives.

“(13) The Regulations (Disallowance) Act 1989, apart from the modification to the application of section 4 of that Act made by subsection (12) of this section, applies to regulations that incorporate material by reference.
“105C Requirement to consult on proposal to incorporate material by reference

“(1) Before regulations incorporating material by reference are made under section 105 or 105A, the chief executive must—

“(a) make copies of the material proposed to be incorporated by reference (the proposed material) available for inspection during working hours for a reasonable period, free of charge, at the head office of the department responsible for the administration of this Act (the administering department) and at any other place that the chief executive determines is appropriate; and

“(b) state where copies of the proposed material are available for purchase; and

“(c) make copies of the proposed material available, free of charge, on an Internet site maintained by or on behalf of the administering department, unless doing so would infringe copyright; and

“(d) give notice in the Gazette stating—

“(i) that the proposed material is available for inspection during working hours, free of charge, and stating the places at which it can be inspected and the period during which it can be inspected; and

“(ii) that copies of the proposed material can be purchased and stating the places at which they can be purchased; and

“(iii) if applicable, that the proposed material is available on the Internet, free of charge, and stating the Internet site address; and

“(e) allow a reasonable opportunity for persons to comment on the proposal to incorporate the proposed material by reference; and

“(f) consider any comments made.

“(2) The chief executive—

“(a) may make copies of the proposed material available in any other way that he or she considers appropriate in the circumstances; and

“(b) must, if paragraph (a) applies, give notice in the Gazette stating that the proposed material is available in other ways and giving details of where or how it can be accessed or obtained.

“(3) The chief executive may comply with subsection (1)(c) (if applicable) by providing a hypertext link from an Internet site maintained by or on behalf of the administrating department to a copy of the proposed material that is available, free of charge, on an Internet site that is maintained by or on behalf of someone else.

“(4) A failure to comply with this section does not invalidate an instrument that incorporates material by reference in reliance on section 105B.

“(5) For the purposes of subsection (1)(c), a chief executive may not rely on section 66 of the Copyright Act 1994 as authority to make the proposed material available on an Internet site.

“(6) Nothing in this section applies to material proposed to be incorporated by reference described in section 105B(1).

“(7) In this section, proposed material means—

“(a) the material itself:

“(b) an accurate translation in an official New Zealand language of the material, if the material is not in an official New Zealand language.”

Repeals, consequential amendments, and transitional provisions

50 Repeals Part 2 replaced

~~(1) In section 106, repeal the definition of existing privilege.~~

~~(2) Repeal sections 110B, 111(3), and 111A(2), the cross-heading above section 112, and sections 112 to 114A, 117, and 118.~~
(1) Replace Part 2 with:
“Part 2
“Savings and transitional provisions

“106 Savings and transitional provisions

The savings and transitional provisions set out in Schedule 1 have effect for the purposes of this Act.”

51 New sections 115A to 115I and cross-heading inserted

~~After section 115, insert:~~
~~“Transitional provisions ~~and consequential amendments~~ relating to Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012~~
~~“115A Current permit holders must designate permit operator~~

~~“(1) A permit holder that immediately before the commencement of this section comprises 2 or more persons must designate one of those persons to be the permit operator for the permit.~~

~~“(2) The permit holder must provide the chief executive with the name and contact details of the permit operator not later than 20 working days after the date of commencement of this section.~~
~~“115B Provisions relating to minerals programmes~~

~~“(1) This section applies in relation to every permit and every minerals programme (the old minerals programme) that had effect immediately before the commencement of this section.~~

~~“(2) Despite section 13, every old minerals programme continues to have effect subject to this section.~~

“(3) An old minerals programme that applies to a permit holder immediately before the commencement of this section continues to apply to the holder until the earliest of the following events occurs:

~~“(a) the holder applies to extend or otherwise change the permit:~~

~~“(b) the holder surrenders the permit in exchange for a subsequent permit:~~

~~“(c) the holder opts into a new minerals programme by notice in writing under subsection (4).~~

“(4) If a new minerals programme is approved in place of an old minerals programme, the holder of a permit to which this section applies may opt into the new minerals programme by notice in writing to the Minister.

~~“(5) If a permit holder opts into a new minerals programme under this section,—~~

“(a) the new minerals programme applies to the permit holder from the date on which the Minister approves a revised work programme for the holder that is consistent with the new minerals programme; and

~~“(b) the new minerals programme must be taken to be the relevant minerals programme for the purposes of this Act.~~

“(6) Any action taken in anticipation of, or as part of, offering a permit for allocation by public tender under section 24 under an old minerals programme, including consultation on a notice for the allocation of permits by public tender, must be treated as having occurred under a new minerals programme that is approved in place of the old minerals programme.

“(7) If the Minister has offered permits for allocation by public tender under section 24 under an old minerals programme, that process may be continued and completed under a new minerals programme that is approved in place of the old minerals programme.

“(8) Despite sections 16 to 18, section 19 is deemed to authorise the Governor-General in Council to approve any new minerals programme within 7 days after the commencement of section 15 of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012 without complying with sections 16 to 18.

“(9) To avoid doubt, the references in subsection (8) to sections 16 to 18 and 19 are references to new sections 16 to 18 and 19 as replaced by section 15 of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012.
~~“115C Provisions about royalties~~

~~“(1) This section applies to every permit that exists immediately before the commencement of this section (an existing permit).~~

“(2) Despite anything in section 105A, regulations made under that section, or section 115B, any royalties to be calculated under an existing permit or a subsequent permit that is granted in exchange for the existing permit must continue to be calculated in accordance with the minerals programme that applied when the existing permit (or, if there were permits prior to the existing permit, the initial permit) was granted.

~~“(3) Subsection (2) applies even if the minerals programme that applied when the existing permit was granted is replaced.~~

“(4) However, if an existing permit is changed to cover a different mineral, royalties in respect of that mineral must be calculated in accordance with regulations made under section 105A as those regulations apply when the change to the permit takes effect.
~~“115D Pending applications for permit or change to permit~~

“(1) This section applies to every application (other than an application to which section 115E applies) for a permit, or for a change to a permit, under this Act for which a final decision has not been made before the commencement of this section.

~~“(2) The application is subject to this Act (as amended by the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012), except as otherwise provided in this section or section 115E.~~

“(3) Any requirement to use a prescribed form that is imposed by virtue of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012 must be treated as having been complied with in the case of applications to which this section applies.

“(4) The chief executive may require an applicant to provide any further information or document that the chief executive considers necessary in order to enable him or her to deal with the application in accordance with this Act as so amended.

“(5) If a new application is made in place of a pending application to which this section applies, and rights under this Act as so amended are based on the order in which an application is received, the new application must be treated as having been received by the chief executive when the pending application was received.
~~“115E Pending applications for petroleum exploration permit or change to permit~~

~~“(1) This section applies to every application for a petroleum exploration permit, or for a change to any such permit, under this Act—~~

~~“(a) that was made before 30 August 2011 under the Minerals Programme for Petroleum (2005); and~~

~~“(b) for which a final decision has not been made before the commencement of this section.~~

“(2) Every application to which this section applies must be dealt with under this Act (as it read immediately before the commencement of this section) and the Minerals Programme for Petroleum (2005) (as it read immediately before being revised on 25 January 2012).

~~“(3) Every permit granted in respect of an application to which this section applies has effect as if granted under this Act (as amended by the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012).~~
~~“115F Relinquishment obligation~~

If an exploration permit holder has relinquished any area subject to the permit in order to obtain an extension of duration under section 37, the relinquishment is deemed to be a relinquishment obligation for the purposes of section 35C.
~~“115G Pending applications for access arrangement for Crown land~~

“(1) This section applies to every application for an access arrangement under section 61 in respect of Crown land for which a final decision has not been made before the commencement of this section.

~~“(2) This Act (as amended by the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012) applies to every application to which this section applies.~~
~~“115H Provisions relating to privileges continued by Act~~

~~“(1) This section applies to every existing privilege that is a licence granted under the Mining Act 1971 or the Coal Mines Act 1979.~~

~~“(2) From the commencement of this section, holders of existing privileges to which this section applies—~~

~~“(a) are not required to comply with the requirements for the lodging of data and reports specified in the relevant Act or in any regulations made under that Act; but~~

~~“(b) must comply with the requirements for the lodging of data and reports in respect of the licence that would apply if the licence were the equivalent kind of minerals permit under this Act.~~
~~“115I Application of new provisions to existing privileges~~

~~“(1) This section applies to every existing privilege.~~

~~“(2) Sections 27A and 115A apply to existing privileges as if the existing privileges were a permit to which those sections apply.~~

~~“(3) Sections 2A and 2B, as far as they are applicable, apply to existing privileges for the purposes of sections 33A, 33B, and 90.~~

“(4) Sections 99B to 99F and 99H to 99K apply to existing privileges, but the reference in section 99C to an offence against this Act must be read as a reference to an offence against the relevant Act referred to in the definition of existing privilege.”

51 New Schedule 1 inserted

Insert, as Schedule 1, the Schedule 1 set out in Schedule 1A of this Act.

52 Schedule 4 replaced

(1) Replace Schedule 4 with the Schedule 4 set out in Schedule 1 of this Act.

(2) If, immediately before the commencement of this section, a final decision has not been made about an access arrangement application made to the Minister of Conservation, that Minister must consider the application in accordance with the Schedule 4 enacted by subsection (1).

53 New Schedule 5 inserted

After Schedule 4, insert the Schedule 5 set out in Schedule 2 of this Act.

53A Amendments to principal Act relating to Legislation Act 2012

(1) This section takes effect on the repeal of the Acts and Regulations Publication Act 1989 and the Regulations (Disallowance) Act 1989.
(2) Replace section 19(2) of the principal Act (as inserted by section 15 of this Act) with:
- “(2) A minerals programme—
  
  “(a) is a disallowable instrument for the purposes of the Legislation Act 2012; and
  
  “(b) must be presented to the House of Representatives under section 41 of that Act.”
(3) Replace section 105B(11) to (13) of the principal Act (as inserted by section 49 of this Act) with:
- “(11) Part 2 of the Legislation Act 2012 does not apply to—
  
  “(a) standards or terms incorporated by reference in regulations made under this section; or
  
  “(b) an amendment to, or replacement of those standards or terms.
- “(12) Subpart 1 of Part 3 of the Legislation Act 2012 applies to regulations made under this section that incorporate standards or terms by reference.
- “(13) However, nothing in section 41 of the Legislation Act 2012 requires material that is incorporated by reference in regulations made under this section to be presented to the House of Representatives.”

54 Consequential and minor amendments to principal Act

Amend the principal Act as set out in Schedule 3.

54A Consequential amendments to other Acts

Amend the Acts specified in Schedule 4 as set out in that schedule.

Part 2
Amendments to Conservation Act 1987

55 Principal Act

This Part amends the Conservation Act 1987 (the principal Act).

56 Section 2 amended (Interpretation)

~~In section 2(1), insert in its appropriate alphabetical order:~~

“Ramsar Administrative Authority means the administering agency that is the Ramsar Administrative Authority for New Zealand, as from time to time advised by the Government of New Zealand to the Ramsar Bureau of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, done at Ramsar on the 2nd day of February 1971”.

56 Section 2 amended (Interpretation)

(1) In section 2(1), insert in their appropriate alphabetical order:

“Ramsar Administrative Authority means the administering agency that is the Ramsar Administrative Authority for New Zealand, as from time to time advised by the Government of New Zealand to the Ramsar Secretariat

“Ramsar Secretariat means the body responsible for co-ordination of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat, done at Ramsar on 2 February 1971”.

(2) In section 2(2), replace “section 18(1)” with “section 18AA(1) or 18(1)”.

56A Section 8 amended (Conservation area may become reserve, national park, etc)

(1) After section 8(1A), insert:
- “(1B) Subsection (1A) is subject to subsection (4).”
(2) After section 8(3), insert:
- “(4) The Minister must not act under subsection (1A) to declare a conservation area—
  
  “(a) to be a nature reserve or a scientific reserve under the Reserves Act 1977; or
  
  “(b) to be included in an existing nature reserve or scientific reserve under that Act.”

57 New sections 18AA and 18AB inserted

In Part 4, before section 18, insert:
“18AA Governor-General may confer additional protection or preservation requirements~~, and declare conservation area as wilderness or sanctuary area~~

“(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, declare any conservation area—

“(a) to be held for the purpose of a wilderness area, a sanctuary area, or both; and

“(b) to have the official geographic name stated in the order.

“(2) Before making a recommendation under subsection (1), the Minister must—

“(a) refer the proposed name to the New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa for review under subpart 3 of Part 2 of the New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008; and

“(b) give public notice of the intention to recommend the making of the order that includes the proposed name for the area.

“(3) ~~Sections 18(2) and (3) and 49 apply,~~ Section 49 applies, with the necessary modifications, to a notice given under subsection (2)(b).

“(4) A conservation area declared to be held for the purpose of a wilderness area, a sanctuary area, or both, under this section must be managed in a manner that is consistent with that purpose or those purposes (as the case may be).

“(5) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, vary or revoke the purpose, or all or any of the purposes, for which any conservation area held under subsection (1) is held, and the land is to be held accordingly as provided in the order.

“(6) Before making a recommendation under subsection (5), the Minister must give public notice of ~~his or her~~ the intention to ~~do so~~ recommend the making of the order, and section 49 applies with the necessary modifications.

~~“(7) Nothing in section 20 or 22 limits subsection (3).~~
“18AB Governor-General may declare that wetland be notified to Ramsar ~~Bureau~~ Secretariat ~~of Convention on Wetlands of International Importance~~

“(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister,—

“(a) specify a wetland and the details of the area of the wetland; and

“(b) declare that the Minister for the time being responsible for the Ramsar Administrative Authority must notify the Ramsar ~~Bureau~~ Secretariat ~~of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, done at Ramsar on the 2nd day of February 1971,~~ of the wetland and the details of the area of the wetland; and

“(c) declare that the wetland is to have the official geographic name stated in the order.

“(2) Before making a recommendation under subsection (1)~~(c)~~, the Minister must refer the proposed name to the New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa for review under subpart 3 of Part 2 of the New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008.”

58 Section 18 amended (Minister may confer additional specific protection or preservation requirements)

In section 18(1), delete “a sanctuary area, a wilderness area,”.

Part 3
Amendments to Continental Shelf Act 1964

59 Principal Act

This Part amends the Continental Shelf Act 1964 (the principal Act).

59A Section 4 amended (Mining for petroleum on continental shelf)

In section 4(1)(c), replace “2(2)” with “2A”.

60 Section 5 amended (Mining for minerals on continental shelf)

After section 5(7), insert:
- “(8) No licence may be granted under this section after the commencement of section 5AA.
- “(9) Subsection (8) applies regardless of whether an application for a licence is made before that date.
- “(10) However, a person granted a licence to prospect for minerals under this section before the commencement of section 5AA may apply for a subsequent exploration or mining permit in accordance with section 32 of the Crown Minerals Act 1991 as if the licence to prospect were a prospecting permit or exploration permit granted under that Act by operation of section 5AA.”

61 New section 5AA inserted (Mining for minerals on continental shelf on or after commencement of this section)

After section 5, insert:
“5AA Mining for minerals on continental shelf on or after commencement of this section

From the commencement of this section, the Crown Minerals Act 1991 (except section 10) and any regulations made under that Act, as far as they are applicable and with any necessary modifications, apply to minerals other than petroleum in the seabed or subsoil of the continental shelf as if—

“(a) every reference in that Act or those regulations to land included a reference to the seabed (including, where necessary, the subsoil) of the continental shelf; and

“(b) every reference in that Act or in those regulations to New Zealand included a reference to the continental shelf; and

“(c) the Minister of Transport were the appropriate Minister for the purposes of section ~~2(2)~~ 2A of that Act.”

62 Section 5A amended (Payments and contributions with respect to exploitation of continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles)

(1) In section 5A(1)(b), after “measured”, insert “; and”.
(2) After section 5A(1)(b), insert:
- “(c) every permit granted under section 25 of the Crown Minerals Act 1991, in respect of the exploration or prospecting for, or the mining of, minerals other than petroleum in the seabed and subsoil of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.”

Part 4
Amendments to Reserves Act 1977

63 Principal Act

This Part amends the Reserves Act 1977 (the principal Act).

64 Section 5 amended (Restricting application of this Act)

(1) Replace section 5(1) with:
- “(1) This Act does not apply to any land that is subject to the Forests Act 1949.”
(2) Repeal the proviso to section 5(2).
(3) After section 5(2), insert:
- “(3) Nothing in subsection (2) limits—
  
  “(a) the power of the Minister—
  
  “(i) to classify, or change the classification of, any reserve other than ~~any~~ a nature reserve or a scientific reserve; or
  
  “(ii) to recommend to the Governor-General that an Order in Council be made to classify, or change the classification of, ~~any~~ a nature reserve or scientific reserve; or
  
  “(b) the power of the Governor-General to make an Order in Council under section ~~16A(4)~~ 16A(3).”

65 Section 6 amended (Powers of Minister in cases of doubt)

(1) After section 6(2), insert:
- “(2A) Despite subsections (1) and (2), the Minister must not act under those provisions to—
  
  “(a) declare any land to be a nature reserve or a scientific reserve or to be included in an existing nature reserve or scientific reserve; or
  
  “(b) define the purpose of any reserve to be held for the purpose of a nature reserve or a scientific reserve.
- “(2B) Instead, the Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister,—
  
  “(a) declare that land specified in the order is or is not a nature reserve or a scientific reserve; or
  
  “(b) declare that a reserve must be held for the purpose of a nature reserve or a scientific reserve, according to the terms of the order.”
~~(1) After section 6(4), insert:~~
- “(5) Despite anything in subsections (1) to (4), the Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, declare that land specified in the order is or is not a nature reserve or a scientific reserve, and the land must be treated as classified or not classified (as the case may be) for the purposes of this Act according to the terms of the order.”

66 Section 16 amended (Classification of reserves)

~~(1) In the heading to section 16, after “reserves”, insert “before commencement of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012”.~~

~~(2) In section 16(1)(b), after “this Act,” insert “but before the commencement of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012,”.~~
(1) After section 16(11), insert:
- “(12) This section is subject to section 16A in respect of the classification of nature and scientific reserves.”

67 New section 16A inserted (Classification of reserves on and from commencement of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012)

~~After section 16, insert:~~
~~“16A Classification of reserves on and from commencement of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012~~

“(1) To ensure the control, management, development, use, maintenance, and preservation of reserves for their appropriate purposes, all reserves created on and from the commencement of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012 must be classified—

~~“(a) according to their principal or primary purpose as described in sections 17 to 23; and~~

~~“(b) in accordance with this section.~~

~~“(2) The Minister must classify a reserve by notice in the Gazette if the principal or primary purpose of the reserve is the same as that specified for—~~

~~“(a) a recreation reserve in section 17; or~~

~~“(b) a historic reserve in section 18; or~~

~~“(c) a scenic reserve in section 19.~~

“(3) The Minister must recommend to the Governor-General that an Order in Council be made to classify a reserve as a nature reserve or as a scientific reserve if the principal or primary purpose of the reserve is the same as that specified for—

~~“(a) a nature reserve in section 20; or~~

~~“(b) a scientific reserve in section 21.~~

~~“(4) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, classify a reserve as a nature reserve or as a scientific reserve.~~

“(5) A reserve may be divided into parts and 1 or more parts may be classified for different purposes from 1 or more of the other parts, in which case each part or group of parts must be classified by the Minister or the Governor-General in terms of its purpose.

~~“(6) For the purposes of this section, section 16 applies with the following modifications:~~

~~“(a) as if subsections (1), (2), (2C) to (2G), and (11) were omitted:~~

~~“(b) as if, in subsection (4), after ‘Before classifying’, there were inserted ‘or recommending the classification of’:~~

~~“(c) as if, in subsection (9), after ‘unless the Minister in the notice’, there were inserted ‘or the Governor-General by Order in Council’.”~~

67 New section 16A inserted (Application of section 16 to nature and scientific reserves after commencement of Part 1 of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012)

After section 16, insert:
“16A Application of section 16 to nature and scientific reserves after commencement of Part 1 of Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012
- “(1) Despite section 16, on and from the commencement of Part 1 of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012,—
  
  “(a) all reserves existing immediately before the commencement of that Act and not yet classified in accordance with section 16 must be classified in accordance with this section if the reserve is to be classified as a nature reserve or a scientific reserve:
  
  “(b) all nature and scientific reserves created after the commencement of Part 1 of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012 must be classified in accordance with this section.
  
  “(2) The Minister must recommend to the Governor-General that an Order in Council be made to classify a reserve as a nature reserve or as a scientific reserve if the principal or primary purpose of the reserve is the same as that specified for—
  
  “(a) a nature reserve in section 20; or
  
  “(b) a scientific reserve in section 21.
  
  “(3) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister, classify a reserve as a nature reserve or as a scientific reserve.
  
  “(4) Before making a recommendation under subsection (2), the Minister must give public notice in accordance with section 119 specifying the classification proposed, and must consider in accordance with section 120 all objections against and submissions in relation to the proposal, and those sections apply accordingly with any necessary modifications.
  
  “(5) When classified under this section, each reserve must be held and administered for the purpose or purposes for which it is classified and for no other purpose.”

68 Section 24 amended (Change of classification or purpose or revocation of reserves)

~~(1) In section 24(1), after “Subject to”, insert “section 6(5) and”.~~

~~(2) Repeal the proviso to section 24(1).~~

(1) Repeal section 24(4).
(2) After section 24(7), insert:
- “(8) The Minister must not change the classification or purpose, or revoke the reservation status, of the whole or a part of a nature reserve or a scientific reserve under subsection (1).
- “(9) Instead, a change to the classification or purpose, or the revocation of the reservation status, of the whole or a part of a nature reserve or a scientific reserve must be made by the Governor-General by Order in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister.
- “(10) The Minister must not make a recommendation under subsection (9) to change the classification or purpose, or to revoke the reservation status, of a nature reserve or a scientific reserve unless—
  
  “(a) the Minister is satisfied that the reserve is no longer suitable for the purposes of its classification because of the destruction of its forest, bush, or other vegetation, or of its fauna or natural or scientific features, or for any other similar cause; and
  
  “(b) the Minister has complied with subsection (2), with any necessary modifications.
- “(11) Subsection (10)(a), does not apply if the intended change of classification is from—
  
  “(a) nature reserve to scientific reserve or scenic reserve:
  
  “(b) scientific reserve to nature reserve or scenic reserve.”

69 Section 47 amended (Wilderness areas)

(1) Replace section 47(1) with:
- “(1) The Governor-General may, by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister,—
  
  “(a) set apart the whole or any specified part of a reserve as a wilderness area:
  
  “(b) vary or revoke any order made under this subsection.”
(2) In section 47(2)(a), replace “administering body” with “Minister (in any case where there is no administering body) or the administering body (if there is one)”.

(3) In section 47(2)(a)(ii), after “lodge with the”, insert “Minister or the”.

Part 5
Amendments to Wildlife Act 1953

70 Principal Act

This Part amends the Wildlife Act 1953 (the principal Act).

71 Section 9 amended (Wildlife sanctuaries)

(1) In section 9(1), replace “by Proclamation” with “by Order in Council made on the recommendation of the Minister”.

(1A) In section 9(1), replace “no Proclamation” with “no Order” in each place.

(1B) In section 9(1) and (4), replace “such Proclamation” with “such Order”.

(1C) In section 9(1)(aa), delete “within the meaning of the Harbours Act 1950”.

(1D) In section 9(2), replace “by Proclamation” with “by Order in Council”.

(1E) In section 9(3) and (4) “a Proclamation” with “an Order in Council”.

(2) In section 9, replace “the Proclamation” with “the Order ~~in Council~~” in each place.

72 Section 10 amended (All wildlife in sanctuaries absolutely protected)

In section 10, replace “Proclamation” with “Order in Council”.

73 Section 64 amended (Offences in relation to wildlife sanctuaries)

In section 64, replace “Proclamation” with “Order in Council”.

74 Section 67F amended (Penalties for other offences)

In section 67F(4)(d), replace “a Proclamation” with “an Order in Council”.

s 51

Schedule 1
Savings and transitional provisions

ss 1B, 106

Contents

Part 1

1 Interpretation

Subpart 1 —Provisions relating to permits and permit holders

2 Permit holder must notify Minister of operator

3 Provisions relating to minerals programmes

4 Provisions about royalties

5 Pending applications for permit or change to permit

6 Pending applications for petroleum exploration permit or change to permit

7 Current petroleum exploration permit holders' rights to extension of duration of permit

8 Relinquishment obligation

9 Pending applications for access arrangement for Crown land

10 Provisions relating to speculative prospectors

Subpart 2 —Provisions relating to existing privileges

11 Application of this subpart

12 Existing privileges continue

13 Operators for existing privileges

14 New sections apply to existing privileges

15 Administration of existing privileges in respect of Resource Management Act 1991 and Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 matters

16 Bonds and monetary deposits

17 Fees payable by holders of existing privileges

18 Data lodgement requirements for certain existing privileges

19 Notices under section 24 of Mining Act 1971

20 Compensation claims

Subpart 3 —Other matters

21 Existing reservations of land

Part 1

1 Interpretation

In Part 1 of this schedule,—

Amendment Act means Part 1 of the Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012

new section, new subsection, or new Schedule means the specified section, subsection, or Schedule of the principal Act as amended, replaced, or inserted by the Amendment Act

old Part, old section, or old subsection means the specified Part, section, or subsection of the principal Act as it read immediately before the section was amended or replaced by the Amendment Act

principal Act means this Act (the Crown Minerals Act 1991).

Subpart 1—Provisions relating to permits and permit holders

2 Permit holder must notify Minister of operator

(1) This clause applies to a permit holder that, immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act, comprises 2 or more permit participants.

(2) No later than 5 December 2013, the permit holder must—

(a) notify the Minister of which permit participant is responsible, on behalf of the permit holder, for the day-to-day management of activities under the permit; and

(b) provide the chief executive with the name and contact details of that permit participant.

(3) For the purposes of the principal Act, the permit participant notified to the Minister is, on and from the date of notification, the permit operator for the permit.

3 Provisions relating to minerals programmes

(1) This clause applies in relation to every permit and every minerals programme (an old minerals programme) that had effect immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act.

(2) Despite new section 13, every old minerals programme continues to have effect subject to this clause and new section 22(2).

(3) An old minerals programme that applies to a permit immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act continues to apply to the permit until the earliest of the following events occurs:

(a) the permit holder applies for a subsequent permit in accordance with new section 32:

(b) the permit holder applies to change the permit under or in accordance with new section 36:

(c) the permit holder applies to surrender part of the permit under new section 40:

(d) a permit participant applies for a consent to transfer some or all of its participating interest in the permit under new section 41:

(e) a permit participant notifies the Minister of a change of control within the scope of new section 41A:

(f) a permit participant applies for consent to a dealing within the scope of new section 41B:

(g) the permit holder applies for the permit operator to be changed under new section 41C:

(h) the permit holder opts into the current minerals programme in accordance with subclause (5).

(4) Once the event occurs, the minerals programme referred to in new section 13 applies to the permit.

(5) If a minerals programme is approved under new Part 1A in place of an old minerals programme, the holder of a permit to which this clause applies may opt into that minerals programme (the current minerals programme) by notice in writing to the Minister, and the current minerals programme applies to the permit from the date on which the Minister approves a revised work programme for the permit that is consistent with the current minerals programme.

(6) Any action taken in anticipation of, or as part of, offering a permit for allocation by public tender under an old minerals programme, including consultation on a notice for the allocation of permits by public tender, must be treated as having occurred under—

(a) new section 24; and

(b) a minerals programme that is approved under new Part 1A.

(7) If the Minister has offered permits for allocation by public tender under old section 24 under an old minerals programme, that process may be continued and completed under—

(a) new section 24; and

(b) any minerals programme that is approved under Part 1A in place of the old minerals programme.

(8) Despite new sections 16 to 18, new section 19 is deemed to authorise the Governor-General in Council to approve any new minerals programme within 7 days after the commencement of the Amendment Act without complying with new sections 16 to 18.

4 Provisions about royalties

(1) This clause applies to every permit that existed immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act (an existing permit).

(2) Despite anything in clause 3, new section 105A, or regulations made under new section 105A, any royalties to be calculated under an existing permit or a subsequent permit that is granted in exchange for the existing permit must continue to be calculated in accordance with the minerals programme that applied when the existing permit (or, if the existing permit is a subsequent permit, the initial permit to that subsequent permit) was granted.

(3) Subclause (2) applies even if the minerals programme that applied when the existing permit was granted is replaced.

(4) However, if an existing permit is changed to cover a different mineral, royalties in respect of that mineral must be calculated in accordance with regulations made under new section 105A as those regulations apply when the change to the permit takes effect.

5 Pending applications for permit or change to permit

(1) This clause applies to the following applications and notifications if a final decision in respect of the application or notification has not been made before the commencement of the Amendment Act:

(a) an application for a permit (other than an application to which clause 6 applies); and

(b) an application under old section 36, 37, or 41; and

(c) a notification under old section 40.

(2) The application or notification is subject to the principal Act (as amended by the Amendment Act), except as otherwise provided in this clause.

(3) Any requirement to use a prescribed form that is imposed by virtue of the Amendment Act must be treated as having been complied with in the case of applications and notifications to which this clause applies.

(4) The chief executive may require an applicant or person making a notification to provide any further information or document that the chief executive considers necessary in order to enable him or her to deal with the application or notification in accordance with the principal Act as so amended.

6 Pending applications for petroleum exploration permit or change to permit

(1) This clause applies to every application for a petroleum exploration permit under the principal Act—

(a) that was made before 30 August 2011 under the Minerals Programme for Petroleum (2005); and

(b) for which a final decision has not been made before the commencement of the Amendment Act.

(2) An application must be dealt with under the principal Act (as it read immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act) and the Minerals Programme for Petroleum (2005) (as it read immediately before being revised on 25 January 2012).

(3) A permit granted in respect of an application to which this clause applies has effect as if granted under the principal Act (as amended by the Amendment Act).

7 Current petroleum exploration permit holders' rights to extension of duration of permit

(1) This clause applies to every exploration permit for petroleum that existed immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act (an existing permit).

(2) Despite new section 35(4), an existing permit may be extended—

(a) for a period not exceeding 15 years from the commencement date of the permit in accordance with new section 36(1) to (3); and

(b) under new section 35A.

8 Relinquishment obligation

(1) This clause applies to every exploration permit that exists immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act in relation to which the permit holder has relinquished an area subject to the permit in order to obtain an extension of duration under old section 37.

(2) The relinquishment is deemed to be a relinquishment obligation for the purposes of new section 35C.

9 Pending applications for access arrangement for Crown land

(1) This clause applies to every application for an access arrangement under old section 61 in respect of Crown land for which a final decision has not been made before the commencement of the Amendment Act.

(2) The principal Act (as amended by the Amendment Act) applies to the applications.

(3) To avoid doubt, if, immediately before the commencement of the Amendment Act, a final decision has not been made about an access arrangement application made to the Minister of Conservation, the Minister of Conservation or the Minister and the Minister of Conservation, as the case may be, must consider the application in accordance with new Schedule 4.

10 Provisions relating to speculative prospectors

If the Minister determines, within 90 days after the date on which the Amendment Act comes into force, that an existing non-exclusive petroleum prospecting permit holder or an applicant for a petroleum prospecting permit for which the application is made but not determined before the commencement of the Amendment Act is or will be a speculative prospector (within the meaning of new section 90C(7)), new section 90(8) applies to all information provided by the speculative prospector under new section 90 on or after 1 October 2012.

Subpart 2—Provisions relating to existing privileges

11 Application of this subpart

This subpart applies to existing privileges in replacement of all provisions contained in old Part 2.

12 Existing privileges continue

(1) Except as otherwise provided in the rest of this clause and subpart, each existing privilege continues to have effect after the commencement of the Amendment Act as if—

(aa) the Act that applied to the privilege before the commencement of the principal Act continues in force; and

(a) the holder of the privilege continues to have the same statutory rights as the holder would have had if the principal Act and the Resource Management Act 1991 had not been enacted (except that if any consent in respect of the privilege would, but for this subclause, be required and need to be sought under the Resource Management Act 1991, then the Resource Management Act 1991 does apply); and

(b) subject to clause 15, the holder of the privilege continues to have the same statutory obligations as the holder would have had if the principal Act had not been enacted; and

(c) every person having any function, power, or duty relating to the administration of the Act that applied to the privilege before that date continues to have those functions, powers, and duties; and

(d) the Environment Court and any other body having any function, power, or duty connected with the determination of any dispute under the Act which applied to the privilege before that date continued to have those functions, powers, and duties; and

(e) all persons continue to have the same rights to compensation, to make objections, and to appeal as they would have had if the principal Act had not been enacted.

(2) Despite subclause (1), sections 63 and 64 of the Petroleum Act 1937 do not apply in respect of any pipeline to which an authorisation granted under Part 2 of that Act relates.

(3) Despite subclause (1), if, after the commencement of the Amendment Act, a holder of an existing privilege makes an application to which section 77 of the Mining Act 1971 or section 48 of the Coal Mines Act 1979 would apply, then—

(a) the Act does not apply in respect of the application; and

(b) the principal Act as amended by the Amendment Act applies instead in respect of the application as if the existing privilege were a prospecting permit, exploration permit, or mining permit, as the case may be.

(4) Despite subclause (1), no extension of the duration of a mining privilege may be granted on an application for a variation of conditions under section 103D of the Mining Act 1971 made after 5 pm on 19 September 2002.

13 Operators for existing privileges

(1) New section 27A applies to each existing privilege as if the existing privilege were a permit and the holder or holders of the privilege were permit participants, except that the person designated by the existing privilege holder as the permit operator under that section may be someone other than a holder of the existing privilege.

(2) No later than 5 December 2013, the existing privilege holder must—

(a) notify the Minister of which person is responsible, on behalf of the privilege holder, for the day-to-day management of activities under the privilege; and

(b) provide the chief executive with the name and contact details of that person.

(3) For the purposes of the principal Act, the person notified to the Minister is, on and from the date of notification, the permit operator for the existing privilege.

14 New sections apply to existing privileges

(1) New sections 33AA and 33AAB apply to each existing privilege as if the existing privilege were a permit and the holder of the privilege a permit holder.

(2) New sections 33A, 33B, and 90 apply to each existing privilege as if the existing privilege were a permit and the holder of the privilege a permit holder and, for the purpose of those sections, new sections 2B to 2D also apply.

(3) New sections 99B to 99F and 99H to 99L apply to each existing privilege as if the existing privilege were a permit and the holder of the privilege a permit holder, but the reference in new section 99C to an offence against the principal Act must be read as a reference to an offence against the relevant Act referred to in the definition of existing privilege in section 2.

15 Administration of existing privileges in respect of Resource Management Act 1991 and Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 matters

(1) Subject to clause 16, the functions, powers, and duties—

(a) that, before the commencement of the principal Act, would have been exercisable or performable by the Minister of Energy in respect of an existing privilege, or of any condition of an existing privilege, or of any provisions of an Act that relate to an existing privilege; and

(b) that concern matters that are within the functions of a local authority under section 30 or 31 of the Resource Management Act 1991—

are exercisable or performable by the appropriate consent authority and the provisions of the Resource Management Act 1991 relating to the existing privilege, with all necessary modifications, apply accordingly.

(2) Where there is doubt as to which person is responsible for exercising or performing a particular function, power, or duty, and that doubt cannot be resolved by agreement between those persons, any such person may apply to the Environment Court for an order determining the matter, and the court may grant such an order on such conditions as it thinks fit.

(3) Before the Minister varies the terms and conditions of an existing privilege, or takes any enforcement action against the holder of an existing privilege in respect of the existing privilege, the Minister must give written notice to the consent authority that has any functions, powers, and duties in relation to the privilege under this clause, of the proposed action and the reasons for it.

(4) Before a consent authority varies the terms and conditions of an existing privilege, or takes any enforcement action against the holder of an existing privilege in respect of the existing privilege, the consent authority must give written notice to the Minister of the proposed action and the reasons for it.

(5) A failure to comply with subclause (3) or (4) does not invalidate any variation or enforcement action.

(7) A local authority has, for the purposes of exercising or performing its functions, powers, and duties in relation to an existing privilege under this section, all of the powers conferred on an enforcement officer by section 332 of the Resource Management Act 1991.

(8) Despite clause 12(1)(c) or section 4 of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992, the functions, powers, and duties that—

(a) before the commencement of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992, would have been exercisable or performable by any person in respect of an existing privilege; and

(b) concern matters that are within the functions, powers, and duties of an Inspector holding office under section 29(1) of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992—

are exercisable or performable by an Inspector in relation to the existing privilege and that Act applies accordingly with any necessary modifications.

(9) Despite clause 12(1)(c), the functions, powers, and duties—

(a) that before the commencement of the principal Act would have been exercisable or performable by an Inspector and that would have arisen in respect of an existing privilege, or of any condition of an existing privilege, or of any provisions of an Act that relate to an existing privilege; and

(b) that concern matters that are not within the functions of a local authority under section 30 or 31 of the Resource Management Act 1991 or an Inspector under section 29(1) of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992—

are exercisable or performable by the chief executive, and the provisions of the Act relating to the existing privilege apply accordingly, with any necessary modifications.

(10) References in this section to the Minister include references to any statutory officer appointed under the Act under which the existing privilege was granted.

16 Bonds and monetary deposits

(1) The administration of monetary deposits and bonds held under section 108A of the Mining Act 1971, section 71 of the Coal Mines Act 1979, or section 47H of the Petroleum Act 1937 must be carried out so that the chief executive holds the monetary deposit or bond, and any money recovered under a bond, but those sections must apply so that, during the duration of, and on the termination of, an existing privilege,—

(a) the appropriate consent authority is entitled to have first priority to one-half of the amount of any deposit or bond held by the chief executive for the purpose of restoring or protecting any property injuriously affected or endangered by reason of the failure of the holder of the existing privilege to comply with the terms and conditions of the privilege; and

(b) the Minister is entitled to have first priority to the other half of the amount of any deposit or bond for the purpose of the payment of any money payable to the Crown by the holder of the existing privilege in respect of which the deposit or bond is held or in respect of any other existing privilege held by that holder; and

(c) the appropriate consent authority is entitled to the full amount of any increase in the deposit or bond under subclause (2).

(2) Where the regional council for the region within which any land subject to a coal mining right is wholly or predominantly situated is satisfied, after consultation with the appropriate territorial authority, that the amount of the deposit or bond lodged in respect of that right pursuant to section 71(1) of the Coal Mines Act 1979 is insufficient to meet the amount that is or may become payable under section 71(3) of that Act, the regional council may, at intervals of not less than 3 years, require the holder of the coal mining right to increase the amount of the deposit or bond accordingly; and the holder of the coal mining right must comply with that requirement.

(3) Within 15 working days after the date on which notice is given to the holder of the coal mining right that a regional council has increased the amount of deposit or bond pursuant to subclause (2), the holder of the coal mining right may appeal against the decision of the regional council by lodging a notice of appeal with the Environment Court.

(4) A copy of the notice of appeal must be served on the regional council and on the chief executive either before or immediately after it is lodged with the Environment Court.

(5) Subject to subclauses (6) and (7), for the purposes of an appeal under this section, the Environment Court has all the powers, duties, functions, immunities, and discretions conferred on it under the Resource Management Act 1991.

(6) In hearing an appeal under this section, the Environment Court must have regard to—

(a) the purpose for which the deposit or bond is levied; and

(b) the reasonableness of the amount of the deposit or bond set by the regional council, given the purpose for which the deposit or bond is levied.

(7) On completion of the hearing, the Environment Court must prepare a written decision, which must—

(a) uphold the decision of the regional council; or

(b) amend the amount of the increase in the deposit or bond set by the regional council, but such amendment shall not increase the amount originally fixed by the regional council; or

(c) revoke the decision of the regional council.

(8) No appeal lies from any decision of the Environment Court under this section.

17 Fees payable by holders of existing privileges

(1) This clause applies despite clause 12(1).

(2) The holders of coal mining rights under the Coal Mines Act 1979 are not liable for the payment of rental under that Act in respect of any period following the date of commencement of the principal Act.

(3) The holders of mining privileges under the Mining Act 1971 are not liable for the payment of rental under that Act in respect of any period following the date of commencement of the principal Act.

(4) Persons entitled to the payment of rental under the Coal Mines Act 1979 are not entitled to the payment of rental under that Act in respect of any period following the date of commencement of the principal Act.

(5) Persons entitled to the payment of rental under the Mining Act 1971 are not entitled to the payment of rental under that Act in respect of any period following the date of commencement of the principal Act.

(6) From the date of commencement of the principal Act, the holders of coal mining rights under the Coal Mines Act 1979 and the holders of mining privileges under the Mining Act 1971 are liable to pay to the chief executive the fees in respect of their coal mining right or mining privilege as they would be liable to pay if their coal mining right or mining privilege were the equivalent kind of prospecting permit, exploration permit, or mining permit, as the case may be.

(7) Any ironsands export levy payable under an authorisation given or an agreement entered into under the Iron and Steel Industry Act 1959 must be paid 6-monthly within 30 days after 1 January and 1 July in each year.

(8) Where the holder of an existing privilege fails to make payment to the Crown of an ironsands export levy or royalties payable under the existing privilege by the due date, a penalty of 10% of the amount due shall also become due and payable, by the holder of the existing privilege, to the Crown.

(9) Every holder of a mining licence granted under the Petroleum Act 1937 is not liable to pay any fees provided for in that Act or in any regulations made under that Act, but must pay to the chief executive the fees in respect of the licence as the holder would be liable to pay if the licence was the equivalent kind of prospecting permit, exploration permit, or mining permit, as the case may be.

18 Data lodgement requirements for certain existing privileges

(1) Subclause (2) applies in relation to the lodging of data and reports in respect of every existing privilege that is—

(a) a prospecting licence or mining licence granted under the Petroleum Act 1937:

(b) a licence granted under the Mining Act 1971 or the Coal Mines Act 1979.

(2) Despite clause 12(1), from the commencement of the Amendment Act, the holder of an existing privilege is only required to comply with the requirements of the principal Act (as amended by the Amendment Act) for the lodging of data and reports in respect of the licence that would apply if the licence were the equivalent kind of prospecting, mining, or exploration permit, as the case may be.

19 Notices under section 24 of Mining Act 1971

(1) Every notice issued under section 24 of the Mining Act 1971 before the date of commencement of the principal Act continues to have effect until it is revoked by the Minister, and—

(a) any land set apart by any such notice for mining purposes, or any specified mining purposes exclusively, is not available for any other purpose; and

(b) no minerals permit that is inconsistent with any such notice may be applied for or granted under new Part 1B.

(2) The Minister may revoke—

(a) a notice issued under section 24(1)(aa) of the Mining Act 1971, only with the concurrence of the Minister of Conservation:

(b) a notice issued under section 24(1)(b) of that Act, only with the concurrence of the Minister of Lands.

20 Compensation claims

(1) If, immediately before the date of commencement of the principal Act, any claim for compensation under any enactment repealed by the principal Act has been or could be made, that claim may be made or continued and enforced in all respects as if the principal Act had not been enacted.

(2) No person is entitled to compensation from the Crown in respect of any losses arising from—

(a) the loss of the right to apply for a new mining licence under section 77 of the Mining Act 1971:

(b) the loss of the right to apply for a new coal mining licence under section 48 of the Coal Mines Act 1979:

(c) the loss of the right to apply for an extension to the duration of a mining privilege under section 103D of the Mining Act 1971.

Subpart 3—Other matters

21 Existing reservations of land

(1) This clause applies if, before the commencement of the Amendment Act,—

(a) the Minister has given notice that an area of land is reserved for possible allocation by public tender; and

(b) the notice has not been cancelled.

(2) The notice must be treated as if it were a notice made—

(a) on the date of the commencement of the Amendment Act; and

(b) under and compliant with new section 23.

s 52

Schedule 4
Land to which section 61(1A) applies

ss 53, 54, 61

1 Any national park (within the meaning of section 2 of the National Parks Act 1980).

2 Any reserve classified as a nature reserve under section 20 of the Reserves Act 1977.

3 Any reserve classified as a scientific reserve under section 21 of the Reserves Act 1977.

4 Any part of a reserve set apart as a wilderness area under section 47(1) or 47(1) of the Reserves Act 1977.

5 Any conservation area declared under section 18AA or 18(1) of the Conservation Act 1987 as—

(a) a wilderness area; or

(b) a sanctuary area.

6 Any area declared a wildlife sanctuary under section 9(1) of the Wildlife Act 1953.

7 Any area declared a marine reserve under section 4(1) of the Marine Reserves Act 1971.

8 Any land within a wetland and notified to the Ramsar Bureau of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat, done at Ramsar on 2 February 1971, by the Minister for the time being responsible for the Ramsar Administrative Authority. Any land within a wetland and notified to the Ramsar Secretariat by the Minister for the time being responsible for the Ramsar Administrative Authority (as the terms Ramsar Secretariat and Ramsar Administrative Authority are defined in section 2(1) of the Conservation Act 1987).

9 The area described in the Otahu Dedicated Area Notice 1976 (Gazette 1976, p 654).

10 The area described in the Parakawai Geological Area Notice 1980 (Gazette 1980, p 2408).

11 All land—

(a) held, managed, or administered under the Conservation Act 1987, or under any enactment set out in Schedule 1 of that Act, as at 1 October 1991; and

(b) situated on any island in the area bounded by latitude 35°50΄S and latitude 37°10΄S, and longitude 177°E and longitude 174°35΄E, other than the following islands in the Mercury Islands group:

(i) Red Mercury Island (Whakau):

(ii) Atiu or Middle Island:

(iii) Green Island:

(iv) Korapuki Island.

12 All Crown land—

(a) held, as at 1 October 1991, under the Conservation Act 1987 or any enactment set out in Schedule 1 of that Act; and

(b) situated on the Coromandel Peninsula and lying north and north-west of State Highway 25A (Kopu–Hikuai road) and the road from Hikuai to Pauanui Beach known as the Hikuai Settlement Road.

13 The internal waters of the Coromandel Peninsula.

14 The following scenic reserves:

(a) Kaikoura Island Scenic Reserve in Auckland City (Gazette 2004, p 3688):

(b) Rakitu Island Scenic Reserve (Gazette 1995, p 4265).

s 53

Schedule 5
Thresholds for Tier 1 and Tier 2 activities

~~ss 2A,~~ s 2B

Mineral type Exploration permit Mining permit

~~Expected~~ Estimated total work programme expenditure threshold amount* ~~Annual~~ Estimated annual royalty threshold amount ~~Annual~~ Estimated annual production threshold amount

Gold ~~(other than alluvial gold)~~ $1,250,000 $50,000 –

Silver $1,250,000 $50,000 –

Coal $1,250,000 – 200 000 tonnes

Ironsand $1,250,000 – 500 000 tonnes

Metallic mineral $1,250,000 – 500 000 tonnes of ore

*Calculated over the life of the exploration permit

Mineral type	Exploration permit	Mining permit
	~~Expected~~ Estimated total work programme expenditure threshold amount*	~~Annual~~ Estimated annual royalty threshold amount	~~Annual~~ Estimated annual production threshold amount
Gold ~~(other than alluvial gold)~~	$1,250,000	$50,000	–
Silver	$1,250,000	$50,000	–
Coal	$1,250,000	–	200 000 tonnes
Ironsand	$1,250,000	–	500 000 tonnes
Metallic mineral	$1,250,000	–	500 000 tonnes of ore

s 54

Section 2

In section 2(1), definition of draft minerals programme, replace “section 14” with “section 15”.

Section 9

In section 9, after “Compliance with this Act”, insert “or the regulations”.

Section 24

In section 24(1), delete “relevant”.

Section 25A

In section 25A(1) and (2), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 26

In section 26(1), replace “the permit applied for by him or her” with “a permit”.

In section 26(3), replace “his or her” with “that”.

In section 26(4), replace “his or her” with “that”.

In section 26(1) and (5), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 29

In section 29, replace “Chief Surveyor” with “Surveyor-General”.

In section 29, replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 30

In section 30(2), after “explore for the”, insert “Crown owned”.

In section 30(3), after “right to mine the”, insert “Crown owned”.

In section 30(8), replace “a common” with “the same”.

Section 36

In section 36(5B) and (5C), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 39

In section 39(8), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

In section 39(8), replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land”.

In section 39(9), replace “the commencement of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2003” with “21 August 2003”.

Section 40

In section 40(2), (8), (9), and (10), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

In section 40(9), replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land”.

In section 40(9A), replace “the commencement of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2003” with “21 August 2003”.

Section 46

In section 46(4), delete “in that behalf”.

Section 55

In section 55(1), after “any agreement between”, delete “the”.

In section 55(2), after “agreed between”, delete “the”.

Section 62

In section 62(4)(b), replace “Part 2” with “Schedule 1.”

Section 64

In section 64(1) and (3), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 66

In section 66(1) and (2), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

In section 66(3), replace “Secretary's” with “chief executive's”.

In section 66(5), delete “of Energy”.

Section 83

In section 83(1) and (3), replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land”.

In section 83(1), delete “, in the prescribed form,”.

Section 84

In section 84(1), replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land”.

In section 84(2), replace “the commencement of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2003” with “21 August 2003”.

Section 85

In section 85(1), replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land” in each place.

In section 85(2), replace “the commencement of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2003” with “21 August 2003”.

Section 86

In section 86, replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land” in each place.

In section 86(4), replace “Chief Surveyor” with “Surveyor-General”.

Section 87

In section 87, replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land” in each place.

Section 88

In section 88, replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land”.

Section 89

In section 89(1), replace “District Land Registrar” with “Registrar-General of Land” in each place.

In section 89(2), replace “the commencement of the Crown Minerals Amendment Act 2003” with “21 August 2003”.

Section 90

~~In the heading to section 90, replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.~~

~~In section 90(2), (4), (5), (7A), (8A), and (8C), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive” in each place.~~

Section 90B

~~In section 90B(6), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.~~

Section 90C

~~In section 90C(1) and (2), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive” in each place.~~

Section 91

In the heading to section 91, replace “Secretary” with “Chief executive”.

In section 91, replace “Secretary” with “chief executive” in each place.

In section 91(3), delete “by regulations”.

Section 91A

In section 91A, replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 95

In section 95(1), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive” in each place.

In section 95(2), after “section 96”, insert “of this Act”.

Section 97

In section 97, replace “Secretary” with “chief executive” in each place.

Section 100

In section 100(4), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 105

In section 105(1)(gb), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Section 108

~~In section 108(6) and (9), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.~~

~~In section 108(3) and (4), delete “of Energy”.~~

Section 109

~~In section 109(1) and (4), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive” in each place.~~

~~In section 109(3), delete “, in the prescribed form,”.~~

Section 110

~~In section 110(e) and (h), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.~~

~~In section 110(h), delete “prospecting licence or”.~~

Section 116

~~In section 116(1) and (2), delete “of Energy”.~~

s 54A

Climate Change Response Act 2002 (2002 No 40)

In section 4(1), definition of landowner, paragraph (a), replace “section 2(2)” with “section 2A”.

Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012 (2012 No 72)

In section 22(8)(a), replace “section 107” with “clause 12 of Schedule 1”.

Forestry Encouragement Act 1962 (1962 No 20)

In section 2(1), definition of lease, replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

Gas Act 1992 (1992 No 124)

In section 3(2)(a)(i), replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

Income Tax Act 2007 (2007 No 97)

In section CU 26(1)(a)(iii), replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

In section CU 27(2)(c), replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

In section IZ 3(4)(b), replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

In section YA 1, definition of existing privilege, replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

In section YA 1, definition of mining permit, replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

In section YA 1, definition of mining permit area, paragraph (b), replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

Legislation Act 2012 (2012 No 119)

In the Schedule, repeal the item relating to the Crown Minerals Act 1991.

Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Act 2011 (2011 No 3)

In section 9(1), definition of privilege, paragraph (a), replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

Ngai Tahu (Pounamu Vesting) Act 1997 (1997 No 81)

In section 2, definition of existing privilege, replace “section 106” with “section 2(1)”.

Repeal section 5.

Ngai Tāmanuhiri Claims Settlement Act 2012 (2012 No 55)

In section 25(1), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Property Law Act 2007 (2007 No 91)

In section 325(6)(c), replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

In section 330(5)(c), replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

In section 339(6)(c), replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

Rating Valuations Act 1998 (1998 No 69)

In section 2, definition of minerals, replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

Rongowhakaata Claims Settlement Act 2012 (2012 No 54)

In section 28(1), replace “Secretary” with “chief executive”.

Search and Surveillance Act 2012 (2012 No 24)

In the Schedule, insert in its appropriate alphabetical order:

Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Act 2012 99B Enforcement officer authorised by Minister may inspect place or structure (other than dwelling house or marae) to determine whether permit, Crown Minerals Act 1991, or regulations made under that Act being complied with. All (except sections 118 and 119)

99C Constable or enforcement officer authorised by Minister may obtain and execute search warrant to enter and search place or vehicle for evidence of offence against Crown Minerals Act 1991 or regulations made under that Act. All (except sections 118 and 119)

Soil Conservation and Rivers Control Act 1941 (1941 No 12)

In section 20(2), replace “Part 1” with “Part 1B”.

Te Ture Whenua Maori Act 1993 (1993 No 4)

In section 326D(1), replace “Part 1” with “Parts 1 to 1B”.

Legislative history
20 September 2012	Introduction (Bill 70–1)
26 September 2012	First reading and referral to Commerce Committee

Crown Minerals (Permitting and Crown Land) Bill