National Oil Reserves Agency Act 2007

PART 1 Preliminary and General

1. Short Title and commencement.

1.— (1) This Act may be cited as the National Oil Reserves Agency Act 2007.

(2) This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.

2. Interpretation.

2.— In this Act—

“Act of 1963” means the Companies Act 1963;

“Act of 2001” means the Irish National Petroleum Corporation Limited Act 2001;

F1["additives" means non-hydrocarbon compounds added to or blended with a product to modify the properties of that product;]

“Agency” means the body corporate formed and registered under the Companies Acts and continued in existence under section 7 as An Ghníomhaireacht Chúltaca Ola Náisiúnta or, in the English language, as the National Oil Reserves Agency;

“authorised officer” has the meaning assigned by section46;

F1["available and physically accessible" in respect of stocks means that, in a case of particular urgency, the stocks are at the disposal of the Minister and arrangements are in place to release the stocks to the market within time frames and under conditions conducive to alleviating an oil supply disruption;]

“bilateral agreement” means any agreement between the Government and the government of another state relating to the holding of oil stocks;

F2["biofuel" has the meaning assigned bysection 44A;

"biofuel levy" means the biofuel levy imposed underPart 5A;

"biofuel obligation" has the same meaning as inPart 5A;

"biofuel producer" has the meaning assigned bysection 44A;

"biofuel supplier" has the meaning assigned bysection 44A;]

F1["central stockholding entity" means the body or service upon which powers may be conferred to act to acquire, maintain or sell oil stocks, including emergency stocks and specific stocks;]

“chief executive” means the chief executive of the Agency;

F3["Climate Action Fund" means the fund established undersection 37B;]

F4["Council Directive" means Council Directive 2009/119/EC of 14 September 2009^1, as amended by Commission Implementing Directive (EU) 2018/1581 of 19 October 2018^2;]

“designated subsidiary” means a subsidiary in respect of which an order is in operation under section 16(12);

F1["effective international decision to release stocks" means any decision taken by the Governing Board of the International Energy Agency to make crude oil or petroleum products available to the market by a release of the stocks of its members or by additional measures which is in force for the time being;

"emergency stocks" means the oil stocks that each Member State is required to maintain pursuant to Article 3 of the Council Directive;]

F5["EU emergency stocks", "Irish emergency stocks" and "oil stocks agreement" have the meanings assigned to them, respectively in the European Union (Oil Reserves) Regulations 2012 (S.I. No. 541 of 2012);]

“holding contract” has the meaning assigned by section 33;

“IEP Agreement” means the Agreement on an International Energy Program signed at Paris on 18 November 1974;

F1["inland consumption" means the total quantities, calculated in accordance withSchedule 2, delivered within the State for both energy and non-energy use; this aggregate includes deliveries to the transformation sector and deliveries to industry, transport, households and other sectors for final consumption; it also includes the own consumption of the energy sector (other than refinery fuel);]

“intermediate product” means any substance other than crude oil that is capable of being processed into petroleum products of any description;

F1["International Energy Agency" means the intergovernmental organisation of that name established within the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development;]

“levy” means the levy imposed under Part 5;

“local authority” has the same meaning as in the Local Government Act 2001;

F1["major supply disruption" means a substantial and sudden drop in the supply of crude oil or petroleum products to the European Communities or to a Member State, irrespective of whether that drop has led to an effective international decision to release stocks;]

“Minister” means the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources;

“national oil reserves” means at any time the total volume of oil stocks F6[(excluding EU emergency stocks and specific stocks)] held at that time by—

(a) the Agency or another person on its behalf under a holding contract,

(b) oil companies, and

(c) oil consumers;

“oil” means crude oil, intermediate products and petroleum products;

“oil company”, with respect to any month, means any person (other than the Agency) that, in the preceding calendar year—

(a) imported into the State or acquired, by purchase or otherwise, from another oil company or from an oil refining or oil storage facility in the State, oil for that person’s own consumption, for resale or for disposal to a third party, or

(b) operated an oil refining or oil storage facility in the State that held in storage, consumed or sold oil;

“oil consumer”, with respect to any month, means any person that, in the preceding calendar year—

(a) imported into the State,

(b) acquired, by purchase or otherwise, from an oil company in the State, or

(c) held in storage in the State,

1,000 or more tonnes of petroleum products exclusively for that person’s own consumption in the State and not for resale or for disposal to a third party;

F7["Oil Emergency Plan" has the meaning assigned to it bysection 68;]

F8["oil stocks" means stocks of the energy products listed in Chapter 3.4 of Annex A to Regulation (EC) No. 1099/2008;]

“petroleum products” includes the following categories of products:

(a) motor spirit and aviation fuel (that is to say, jet fuel of the gasoline type and aviation spirit);

(b) gas oil, diesel oil and kerosene (including jet fuel of the kerosene type);

(c) fuel oils;

F9["prescribed" means prescribed (other than insectionsF10[…]44E, 44G, 44GA, 44Xand44J) by regulations made by the Minister;]

F7["public body" means any of the following:

(a) a Minister of the Government;

(b) a local authority;

(c) the Health Service Executive;

(d) a university or institute of technology;

(e) an education and training board established undersection 9of theEducation and Training Boards Act 2013;

(f) any other person, body or organisation established—

(i) by or under an enactment (other than theCompanies Act 2014) or charter,

(ii) by any scheme administered by a Minister of the Government, or

(iii) under theCompanies Act 2014in pursuance of powers conferred by or under another enactment, and financed wholly or partly by means of money provided, or loans made or guaranteed, by a Minister of the Government or the issue of shares held by or on behalf of a Minister of the Government;

(g) a company (within the meaning of theCompanies Act 2014) a majority of the shares in which are held by or on behalf of a Minister of the Government;

(h) any other person, body, organisation or group that the Minister may prescribe for the purposes of this Act;]

F1["reference year" means the calendar year of the consumption or of the net import data used to calculate either the stocks to be held, or the stocks actually held, at any given time;

F7["register" has the meaning assigned to it bysection 69.]

F4["Regulation (EC) No. 1099/2008" means Regulation (EC) No. 1099/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2008^3, as amended by Commission Regulation (EU) No. 147/2013 of 13 February 2013^4, Commission Regulation (EU) No. 431/2014 of 24 April 2014^5and Commission Regulation (EU) 2017/2010 of 9 November 2017^6;]]

“regulations relating to returns” means regulations under section 59;

“share transfer day” means the day appointed under section 5;

“stockholding obligations”, in relation to the State, means its obligations relating to the maintenance of oil stocks under—

(a) the Council Directive,

(b) any provision of the treaties governing the European Communities,

(c) any act adopted by the institutions of those Communities,

(d) the IEP Agreement, and

(e) any international convention or agreement to which the State is or becomes a party;

“subsidiary” means a subsidiary (within the meaning of section 155 of the Act of 1963) of the Agency;

“superannuation benefit” means a pension, gratuity or other allowance payable on resignation, retirement or death.

3. Expenses.

3.— The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of monies provided by the Oireachtas.

PART 2 Share Transfer

4. Transfer to Minister of share owned by Irish National Petroleum Corporation Limited in National Oil Reserves Agency Limited.

4.— Notwithstanding any enactment or rule of law or any provision contained in the memorandum or articles of association of the Irish National Petroleum Corporation Limited, the Minister shall by order direct the Irish National Petroleum Corporation Limited to transfer, on the share transfer day, the share owned by it in the National Oil Reserves Agency Limited to the Minister on such terms and conditions as the Minister, after consulting with the Minister for Finance, thinks fit.

5. Share transfer day.

5.— The Minister shall by order appoint a day to be the day on which the Irish National Petroleum Corporation Limited transfers the share owned by it in the National Oil Reserves Agency Limited to the Minister.

6. Transfer costs and stamp duty.

6.— (1) Amounts (if any) paid by the Minister in respect of a transfer directed under section 4 shall be repaid to the Central Fund out of monies provided by the Oireachtas.

(2) Stamp duty is not chargeable on an instrument under which the share owned by the Irish National Petroleum Corporation Limited in the National Oil Reserves Agency Limited is transferred to the Minister.

PART 3 The National Oil Reserves Agency

7. Continuation of Agency.

7.— (1) The National Oil Reserves Agency Limited continues in existence under this Act, but is to be known as An Ghníomhaireacht Chúltaca Ola Náisiúnta or, in the English language, as the National Oil Reserves Agency.

(2) Subject to this Act, the Companies Acts continue to apply to the Agency.

(3) Section 6(1)(a) of the Act of 1963 does not apply to the Agency.

8. Object and functions of Agency.

8.— (1) The principal object of the Agency is to perform the functions assigned to it by or under this Act, including the functions of—

(a) maintaining, in accordance with Part 4, oil stocks,

(b) providing, on its own initiative or at the request of the Minister, advice, information or guidance to the Minister on any matter relating to the holding of oil stocks,

F11[(c) (i) collecting and recovering the levy, and

(ii) paying into the Climate Action Fund, out of the proceeds of the levy collected and recovered, such amount as is specified by the Minister pursuant to a direction (if any) given undersection 37A,]

F12[(ca) administering the biofuel obligation in accordance withPart 5A,

(cb) collecting and recovering the biofuel levy,]

(d) providing, as the Agency considers appropriate, such consultancy, advisory, technical assistance and contract services (including research and training services) in the State or elsewhere, on any matter relating to the Agency’s functions under subsection (1)(a), and

(e) representing, at the request of the Minister, a Minister of the Government at meetings of international bodies in so far as the meetings relate to the holding of oil stocks.

(2) The object specified in subsection (1) is to be included in the Agency’s memorandum of association.

(3) The Agency has power to do anything that appears to it to be requisite, advantageous or incidental to, or appears to it to facilitate (either directly or indirectly), the performance by it of its functions as specified in or under this Act or in its memorandum of association and that is not inconsistent with any enactment for the time being in force, including power—

(a) to acquire, by purchase or otherwise, hold, store, import, export, transport and exchange oil,

(b) subject to the prior approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, to acquire land or an interest in land,

(c) to construct, acquire, maintain, operate and develop, in the State or elsewhere, works, plant, equipment, storage tanks and pipelines for holding and transporting oil stocks,

(d) to acquire, charter, hire or otherwise engage ships, vehicles and other means of transportation,

(e) to undertake in the State or elsewhere any other commercial business or operations in connection with the functions of the Agency,

(f) to invest and deal with the Agency’s money,

(g) subject to the prior approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, to enter into joint ventures, partnerships or other commercial arrangements with other persons to construct, acquire, maintain and develop in the State or elsewhere works, plant, equipment, storage tanks and pipelines for holding and transporting oil stocks,

(h) to sell, as the Agency thinks fit, oil held by or on behalf of the Agency,

(i) subject to the prior approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, to sell all or part of any other property of the Agency for such consideration as the Agency thinks fit and in particular for shares, stock, debentures or other securities of F13[any body corporate,]

(j) subject to the prior approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, to enter into any commercial agreement with a third party in the State or elsewhere for the purpose of enabling the Agency to perform its functions F14[undersubsection (1)(a), and]

F15[(k) to pay into the Climate Action Fund, out of the proceeds of the levy collected and recovered, such amount as is specified by the Minister pursuant to a direction (if any) given undersection 37A.]

(4) This section does not prevent the inclusion in the memorandum of association of all objects and powers, consistent with this Act, that are reasonable, necessary or proper for, or incidental or ancillary to, the due attainment of the principal object of the Agency.

(5) The Agency may perform any of its functions through or by the chief executive or any member of its staff duly authorised in that behalf by the Agency.

9. Additional functions.

9.— The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance and after consulting with the Agency and any other Minister of the Government who, in the Minister’s opinion, is concerned, by order assign to the Agency such additional functions connected with the functions assigned to it by or under this Act as the Minister considers appropriate.

10. Share capital of Agency.

10.— The authorised share capital of the Agency, as stated in its memorandum of association, shall be such amount, divided into shares of such value, as may be determined from time to time by the Minister for Finance after consulting with the Minister.

11. Issue of shares.

11.— (1) Shares in the share capital of the Agency may be issued only with the consent of the Minister for Finance given after consulting with the Minister.

(2) The cost of any shares issued to the Minister by the Agency shall be advanced to the Minister by the Minister for Finance out of the Central Fund or the growing produce of the Fund.

12. Exercise by Minister of functions exercisable by shareholders.

12.— The Minister may exercise, in respect of the shares held by him or her in the Agency, all the rights and powers of a holder of such shares and, where a right or power is exercisable by attorney, exercise it by his or her attorney.

13. Memorandum and articles of association.

13.— (1) The Agency shall take such steps as may be necessary under the Companies Acts to alter its memorandum and articles of association for the purpose of making them consistent with this Act.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Companies Acts, any alteration that is made in the memorandum or articles of association of the Agency takes effect only if the alteration is made with the prior approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance.

14. Board of directors.

14.— (1) The board of directors of the Agency is to consist of—

(a) not more than 5 directors (including the chairperson), and

(b) the person holding the office of chief executive who, by virtue of that office, is a director.

(2) The directors (other than the chief executive) shall be appointed by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance.

(3) A person appointed as a director under subsection (2) shall be a person who, in the Minister’s opinion, has experience and competence in one or more of the following areas:

(a) oil or oil related industries;

F16[(aa) biofuel or biofuel related industries;]

(b) chemical or chemical related industries;

(c) finance;

(d) economics;

(e) legal matters;

(f) energy production and supply industries.

(4) Each director appointed under subsection (2) shall be appointed for a period not exceeding 5 years and is eligible for reappointment.

(5) The Minister shall designate one of the directors (other than the chief executive) as chairperson.

(6) The Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance may, at any time, remove from office a director appointed under subsection (2) if—

(a) in the Minister’s opinion, the director has become incapable through ill-health of performing his or her functions,

(b) in the Minister’s opinion, the director has committed stated misbehaviour,