PART 8

Miscellaneous Provisions

Regulations to give effect to acts of European Communities.

57 .— The power to make regulations under this Act includes the power to make provision in such regulations to give effect to—

(a) a provision of the treaties of the European Communities, or

(b) an act adopted by an institution of those Communities.

Regulations and orders.

58 .— (1) The Minister may make regulations—

(a) for any purpose in relation to which regulations are provided for in this Act,

(b) for prescribing any matter or thing referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed, and

(c) generally for the purpose of giving effect to this Act.

(2) The Minister may make orders for any matter in relation to which orders are provided for in this Act.

Minister’s power to make regulations relating to returns.

59 .— (1) The Minister may make regulations—

(a) for the purposes of Parts 4 and 5, requiring the Agency, oil companies and oil consumers to supply the Minister with written returns in each month, and

(b) for the purposes of a bilateral agreement, requiring persons holding oil stocks in the State on behalf of another state in accordance with that agreement to supply the Minister with written returns as and when required by the Minister.

(2) Regulations under this section may, among other things, make provision for the following matters:

(a) the information to be contained in returns;

(b) requirements relating to the certification of returns;

(c) the dates by which returns are to be supplied;

(d) the form in which returns are to be supplied;

(e) for the purpose of section 61 , procedures for making representations to the Minister.

(3) A person is guilty of an offence under this section if the person—

(a) fails to supply for a period of 3 consecutive months from the applicable date required under subsection (2)(c) a return in such form and containing such information as is required under subsection (2)(a), or

(b) provides in a return information that is false or misleading in a material respect and that the person knows is false or misleading.

Laying of regulations and orders before Houses of Oireachtas.

60 .— (1) Every regulation and order made under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as practicable after it is made.

(2) Either House of the Oireachtas may, by resolution passed within 21 sitting days after the day on which a regulation or an order (other than an order under section 1 (2), 4 or 5 ) was laid before it in accordance with subsection (1), annul the regulation or order.

(3) The annulment of a regulation or order under this section takes effect immediately on the passing of the resolution concerned, but does not affect anything that was done under the regulation or order before the passing of the resolution.

Power of Minister to apply for compliance order and issue directions.

61 .— (1) If it appears to the Minister that a person has failed to comply with any requirement of regulations relating to returns the Minister, having afforded the person the opportunity to make representations to him or her in accordance with procedures prescribed under section 59 (2)(e), may—

(a) apply to the High Court for an order under subsection (3), or

(b) give to the person such directions as the Minister thinks fit for securing compliance with the relevant requirement.

(2) Before making an application under subsection (1)(a), the Minister shall give the person concerned a notice in writing specifying the nature of the default and giving the person a period of 14 days after being notified of the default within which to make good the default.

(3) If satisfied on application under subsection (1)(a) that the person concerned has failed to comply with such requirement, the High Court may make an order requiring that person to comply with the requirement.

Minister’s prior approval required for certain contracts, holding contract obligations, etc.

62 .— (1) An oil company or oil consumer shall submit contract proposals to the Minister for approval before it enters into a contract with a person (other than the Agency) by which the oil company or the oil consumer, as the case may be, undertakes to hold in the State in accordance with a bilateral agreement an agreed volume of oil stocks in respect of the other person’s stockholding obligations.

(2) Before deciding whether to give or withhold approval of proposals submitted under subsection (1), the Minister shall have regard to such factors as he or she considers appropriate, including—

(a) the level of national oil reserves, and

(b) the availability of adequate holding facilities in the State for the purpose of meeting the State’s stockholding obligations.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2), the Minister may seek the advice of the Agency in relation to the matters referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) of that subsection.

(4) (a) Where a contract to which subsection (1) relates has been entered into by an oil company or an oil consumer to hold oil stocks in the State in accordance with a bilateral agreement, then the oil stocks concerned shall be so held by such oil company or oil consumer.

(b) Where in respect of oil stocks a holding contract has been entered into by a person with the Agency and such contract in whole or in part relates to holding of oil stocks in the State, then, subject to paragraph (c), the oil stocks to be held in the State under such contract shall be so held by such person.

(c) Oil stocks maintained in the State for the purposes of paragraph (b) shall be so maintained—

(i) where duly held in conjunction with an oil refining business carried on in the State, as a specific amount of non-identified oil, and

(ii) in any other case, as a specific amount of identified oil which may not be drawn upon or replenished (except by the Agency), but without prejudice to the replacement of the oil from time to time, with the prior consent of the Agency, for the purpose of avoiding degradation of quality.

(5) In this section and section 38 “ contract proposals ” means—

(a) the name and address of the parties to the contract to hold oil stocks,

(b) the nature and quantity of the stocks,

(c) the location where the stocks are to be held,

(d) the period for which the stocks are to be held, and

(e) such other information as the Minister may require under the State’s stockholding obligations.

Burden of proof in certain proceedings.

63 .— Where in proceedings for the recovery of levy a dispute arises as to whether no levy is payable by virtue of section 37 (3) or as to whether the terms and conditions have been met for claiming an exemption from levy in accordance with section 38 , the burden of proof rests with the defendant oil company or oil consumer.

Prosecution of offences.

64 .— (1) Summary proceedings for an offence may be brought and prosecuted—

(a) in relation to an offence under section 50 , by the Minister or the Agency, and

(b) in relation to an offence under section 59 , by the Minister.

(2) Notwithstanding section 10(4) of the Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act 1851, proceedings for an offence under this Act may be instituted at any time within 2 years from the date of the alleged commission of the offence.

Offences by bodies corporate.

65 .— Where an offence under this Act is committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of a person being a director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate or a person who was purporting to act in any such capacity, that person, as well as the body corporate, is guilty of an offence and is liable to be proceeded against and punished as if he or she were guilty of the first-mentioned offence.

Penalties.

66 .— (1) A person guilty of an offence under this Act is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €5,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both.

(2) If the contravention in respect of which a person is convicted of an offence under this Act continues after the conviction, the person is guilty of a further offence on every day on which the contravention continues and for each such offence the person is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €250.

Giving of notices.

67 .— (1) A notice required or permitted under this Act to be given to a person is to be addressed to the person by name and may be given to the person in one of the following ways:

(a) by delivering it to the person;

(b) by leaving it at the address at which the person ordinarily resides or carries on business;

(c) by sending it by post in a pre-paid registered letter to the address at which the person ordinarily resides or carries on business;

(d) if an address has been provided by the person, by leaving it at the address provided or sending it by pre-paid registered post addressed to the person at that address;

(e) if the person giving the notice considers that notice should be given immediately and a fax machine is located at an address mentioned in paragraph (b) or (d), by sending it by fax to that machine but only if the sender’s fax machine generates a message confirming successful transmission of the total number of pages of the notice.

(2) For the purposes of this section, a company registered under the Companies Acts is deemed to be ordinarily resident at its registered office, and every other body corporate and every unincorporated body is deemed to be ordinarily resident at its principal office or place of business.