Energy

Changes to petroleum laws

The Northern Territory (NT) Government has made major changes to the regulation of onshore petroleum activities in the NT.

These changes affect the Petroleum Act 1984, the Petroleum Regulations 2020, and the Petroleum (Environment) Regulations 2016. They commenced on 22 June 2023.

The changes detail the extremely high standards required of petroleum interest holders in the NT, simplify regulatory procedures and provide stronger penalties for non-compliance.

Many of these changes will help implement recommendations made by the Independent Scientific Inquiry into Hydraulic Fracturing in the NT.

Read more about the inquiry on the Hydraulic Fracturing website.

What these changes mean

Collectively the changes:

  • require industry to pay appropriate securities before starting works to ensure funds are available for:
    • environmental rehabilitation
    • decommissioning of petroleum infrastructure including wells
  • require industry to pay fees and levies to cover all costs associated with industry regulation
  • require industry to pay an annual orphan well levy to fund monitoring and management of orphan wells in the NT
  • establish a new framework of activity and infrastructure plans, designed to ensure that:
    • onshore petroleum resources are managed appropriately for the benefit of the Territory
    • the integrity of wells and surface infrastructure is secured
    • interest holders are pursuing suitable production strategies
  • require industry to comply with activity notification and reporting requirements, including the reporting of incidents on petroleum interest areas
  • provide a modern range of enforcement tools and increased penalties for non-compliance
  • allow interest holders to apply for the use and sale of appraisal petroleum to reduce the environmental impact of avoidable emissions.

Contact

For more information, email energytitlesDITT@nt.gov.au.

For more information about the environmental regulation of onshore petroleum, email onshoregas.depws@nt.gov.au.


Energy pipelines


Reach a land access agreement as a landholder

If you’re a landholder and a petroleum interest holder wants to access your land for petroleum activities, you should know your rights.

As a landholder, you are eligible for compensation if an interest holder carries out activities on your land.

Resources like petroleum belong to the Crown. This means the Northern Territory (NT) Government owns all the petroleum and royalties are paid to the NT by petroleum interest holders for the petroleum produced.

To find out more about royalties, go to the Department of Treasury and Finance website.

Read the guide to land access in the NT.

Guide to land access in the NT PDF (1.4 MB)
Guide to land access in the NT DOCX (666.2 KB)

Types of activities

There are different types of activities a petroleum company may want to carry out on your land.

To search for petroleum titles or to check if a title exists over your land, go to the spatial territory resource information kit for exploration (STRIKE).

To find information about onshore petroleum activities in the NT, go to the petroleum onshore information NT (POINT).

Read more about types of petroleum activities.

Approvals and requirements

The company must have all relevant approvals under the Petroleum Act 1984 and the Petroleum (Environment) Regulations 2016.

Land access agreement

If a company wants to carry out certain activities on your land, it must reach a land access agreement with you.

This is required under the Petroleum Regulations 2020.

A land access agreement is a legally binding document that sets out each party’s rights and obligations.

The agreement:

  • ensures that any exploration for petroleum or development of petroleum respects your rights as a landholder
  • provides minimum provisions about operations on your land, such as weed management and minimising disturbance to livestock.

Compensation

You have rights to compensation under the Petroleum Act 1984 for:

  • having the use or enjoyment of your land taken away
  • damage to the land or improvements caused by the petroleum company.

You also have rights to compensation under the Petroleum Regulations 2020 for:

  • each well a petroleum company drills on the land
  • any decrease in market value of the land caused by regulated petroleum operations.

A land access agreement must detail the minimum amount of compensation you are entitled to under the regulations.

You should get legal and accounting advice around tax and GST associated with compensation payments.

How the process begins

The steps below explain the negotiation process to reach a land access agreement.

Negotiations begin when a petroleum company issues you with a notice advising that it wants to negotiate a land access agreement.

The notice will explain:

  • the petroleum interest the company holds
  • the type of activities it wants to carry out
  • when and where the activities will take place
  • how long they will take.

The company may also provide you with a draft land access agreement.

If you receive a draft agreement

If you receive a draft land access agreement, you should get a lawyer to review it. Agreements must contain minimum protections for you.

They include:

  • livestock disturbance
  • weeds, pests and diseases
  • access points
  • infrastructure
  • damage and repairs
  • legal liabilities and indemnities
  • costs and guarantees
  • compensation.

You may want to negotiate additional conditions or provide your own draft agreement. A lawyer can help you with this.

To find out more, read schedule 2 of the Petroleum Regulations 2020.

Find a current NT legal practitioner on the Law Society NT website.

Term of an agreement

The negotiation notice will state how long a petroleum company wants to access your land. You have a right to negotiate this term.

It cannot exceed the term balance of the company's petroleum title. For example, if a company is granted an exploration permit for five years, the term of the agreement can't exceed the expiry date of the permit.

If you're the occupier

If you're the occupier and not the owner of the land, you may need to negotiate the agreement.

An occupier is a holder of a:

  • lease registered over a freehold land title or
  • sublease or underlease registered over a Crown or pastoral lease.

The petroleum company must notify the landowner when it:

  • begins negotiations with you
  • reaches a land access agreement with you or
  • varies an agreement that exists between you and the petroleum company.

You should get professional advice to help with your negotiations before signing a land access agreement.

Negotiating an agreement is complex and requires a good understanding of legal, financial and agricultural matters including:

  • resource industry law and regulation
  • land valuation
  • natural resource economics
  • accounting.

You should set up your own advisory team with the relevant skills and experience to represent your interests effectively.

Types of advisors and how they can help you

Types of professional advisors that you may want to engage include:

  • a certified practising valuer - choose someone with experience in petroleum and gas legislation to help you negotiate compensation.
  • an accountant - to provide taxation and accounting advice relevant to your circumstances when negotiating or claiming compensation.
  • an agronomist - to assess your soil before and after a petroleum company carries out activities to measure the baseline impacts. They can help to quantify changes in yield, if any, resulting from activities.

Outcome

Read below to find out what steps you need to take if you reach an agreement or if you can't reach an agreement.

If you reach an agreement, the company will apply to the Minister for Mining and Industry to approve it.

You are legally required to meet the terms and conditions of the approved agreement.

It is an offence under the Petroleum Act 1984 to interfere with petroleum activities that have approval.

Access agreement register

Once the minister approves the agreement, it will be recorded in the access agreement register.

The register is available to view by the general public.

A person can inspect, get a certified copy or a certificate of a land access agreement from the register. They can't inspect or get a copy of the actual agreement.

They can access the following information:

  • details of the parties
  • information about the petroleum interest held by the interest holder
  • a description of the land to which the agreement applies
  • term of the agreement
  • date the agreement was:
    • approved by the Minister for Mining and Industry
    • determined by the NTCAT.

Request payment for professional advisor costs

A petroleum company must pay reasonable costs for professional services that you necessarily use to reach an agreement.

This might also include costs if the matter goes to the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NTCAT).

How to request payment

You will need to request payment of your costs in writing and provide details or evidence of what you are claiming.

The company then has 30 days from when you submitted your request to pay, unless it disputes those costs.

Before you incur any costs, you should let the company know what type of professional services you will need and what the fees might be.

You may be personally liable for costs if they are not considered reasonable or have been unnecessarily incurred.

If you negotiate with a petroleum company in good faith for more than 60 days but can't reach an agreement, the matter may progress to an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process.

An ADR process is another way for you and the petroleum company to reach an agreement without having to go through the NTCAT.

It may include:

  • mediation
  • conciliation
  • case appraisal.

It cannot be a binding process such as arbitration.

The petroleum company must provide you with a copy of a draft land access agreement. It will also pay the costs of the ADR convenor.

Request payment for ADR costs

If you claim for costs incurred during the ADR process, you must:

  • request payment in writing and
  • provide details and evidence of the costs you are claiming.

When to apply to the NTCAT

If you can't reach an agreement with the petroleum company through the ADR process, the petroleum company can apply to the NTCAT. It will make a decision and set out an agreement.

This agreement will be legally binding. Both parties must comply with the provisions for the term of the agreement.

It may be possible to challenge a decision made by the NTCAT. To find out more, go to the NTCAT website.


Energy resources

The energy industry is critical to the Northern Territory's (NT) development, particularly in regional areas.

Developing energy resources

There are requirements you must meet if you're exploring for or producing energy resources in the NT.

Find out about:

You can get information about the Territory's known major commodities on the Resourcing the Territory website. This includes:

  • past and current production
  • resource figures
  • details of current projects
  • geological and industry information.

Laws and regulations

Below is a list of legislation and regulations covering the energy resources in the NT.

Petroleum: onshore and inland waters

Petroleum Act 1984

Petroleum Regulations 2020

Petroleum (Environment) Regulations 2016

Petroleum (Transitional) Regulations 2023

Petroleum: specific to Mereenie and Palm Valley

Petroleum (Prospecting and Mining) Act (236.6 kb) PDF (236.6 KB)

Petroleum (Prospecting and Mining) Amendment Act (No. 1) 1981 PDF (77.1 KB)

Petroleum (Prospecting and Mining) Amendment Act (No. 2) 1981 PDF (32.9 KB)

Petroleum (Prospecting and Mining) Amendment Act (No. 3) 1981 PDF (22.0 KB)

Petroleum (Prospecting and Mining) Regulations 2001

Petroleum (Prospecting and Mining) Previous Regulations as in force 1 September 1981 PDF (173.0 KB)

Petroleum: NT coastal waters

Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981

Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Regulations 1987

Pipelines: onshore and inland waters

Energy Pipelines Act 1981

Energy Pipelines Regulations 2001

Environmental Offences and Penalties Act 1996

Environmental Offences and Penalties Regulations 2011

National Gas (Northern Territory) Act 2008

Pipelines: NT coastal waters

Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981

Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Regulations 1987

Geothermal legislation

Geothermal Energy Act 2009

Geothermal Energy Regulations 2009

Other legislation relevant to petroleum and geothermal activities

Aboriginal Land Rights (NT) Act 1976

Dangerous Goods Act 1998

Dangerous Goods Regulations 1985

Environment Protection Act 2019

Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999

Heritage Act 2011

Heritage Regulations 2012

Marine Pollution Act 1999

Marine Pollution Regulations 2003

Native Title Act 1994

Northern Territory Aboriginal Sacred Sites Act 1978

Petroleum Royalty Act 2023

Radioactive Ores and Concentrates (Packaging and Transport) Act 1980

Radioactive Ores and Concentrates (Packaging and Transport) Regulations 1980

Seas and Submerged Lands Act 1973

Soil Conservation and Land Utilisation Act 1969

Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road and Rail (National Uniform Legislation) Act 2010

Transport of Dangerous Goods by Road and Rail (National Uniform Legislation) Regulations 2011

Waste Management and Pollution Control Act 1998

Waste Management and Pollution Control (Administration) Regulations 1998

Water Act 1992

Water Regulations 1992

Weeds Management Act 2001

Weeds Management Regulations 2006

Work Health and Safety (National Uniform Legislation) Act 2011

Work Health and Safety (National Uniform Legislation) Regulations 2011


Petroleum royalties

The Northern Territory (NT) Government owns all the petroleum resources in the Territory.

Petroleum companies must pay the government for the extraction and removal of petroleum resources. This payment is known as a royalty.

The amount of royalties they pay depends on how much petroleum they recover or produce from their petroleum interest area.

Changes to the Act

From 1 July 2023, the Petroleum Royalty Act 2023 will commence. This Act will remove sections related to royalties from the Petroleum Act 1984.

The Petroleum Royalty Act 2023 establishes a new set of rules for calculating, paying, and managing onshore petroleum royalties in the NT.

It applies to:

  • petroleum interests granted under the Petroleum Act 1984
  • any lease granted or renewed under the repealed Petroleum (Mining and Prospecting) Act 1954 that is still in effect under the Petroleum Act 1984.

The Treasurer and the Department of Treasury and Finance (DTF) are responsible for administering petroleum royalties.

Read more about it on the DTF website.


Petroleum operations


Petroleum titles


Contact for sustainable energy

The Office of Sustainable Energy offers policy advice to the government about energy market and renewable energy initiatives and projects in the Northern Territory (NT).

You can contact the office by phone, email, mail or in person.

Office of Sustainable Energy
Level 5 Paspalis Centrepoint building
48-50 Smith Street (corner of Knuckey Street and Smith Street Mall)
Darwin NT 0800

GPO Box 4550
Darwin NT 0801

Phone: 08 8999 6144
sustainableenergy.ditt@nt.gov.au


Contacts for energy development

You can contact the energy development teams using the details below.

General

For general enquiries about energy development, call 08 8999 6459.

Darwin

Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade
Paspalis Centrepoint building
48-50 Smith Street (corner of Knuckey Street and Smith Street Mall)
Darwin NT 0800

GPO Box 4550
Darwin NT 0801

See contact for sustainable energy.

After-hours emergency

For emergencies outside of the business hours of 8am to 4pm ACST, contact the below.

Onshore petroleum operations

Petroleum operations – 1300 935 250

Pipeline operations – 1300 935 250

Offshore petroleum operations

National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority – 1300 674 472

Environmental

Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security – 1800 413 889

Work health and safety

NT WorkSafe – 1800 019 115