Martin Ferguson (Batman, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Resources and Energy) Share this | Hansard source

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This bill amends the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage (Registration Fees) Act 2006 (the Registration Fees Act).

The amendments are consequential to the amendments in the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Amendment (National Regulator) Bill 2011 (National Regulator Bill).

The National Regulator Bill establishes a National Offshore Petroleum Titles Adminis­trator (NOPTA) to administer titles and to advise the joint authorities on key petroleum title decisions. NOPTA will replace the seven designated authorities as the titles administrator for Commonwealth waters.

This bill will replace references to the designated authority in the Registration Fees Act with references to the Titles Admini­strator.

The National Regulator Bill makes provision for the registration fees collected under this act to be retained to recover the costs of establishing NOPTA and the Nat­ional Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA). Following the recovery of these establishment costs, expected in 2013, the 1.5 per cent registration fee will be scrapped and replaced with a cost recovery fee which reflects the actual cost of administration with the required expertise. This will create significant savings for the industry.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

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