Apply for a petroleum title

Introduction

This page has information on how to apply for the following petroleum titles:

  • petroleum exploration permit
  • petroleum production licence
  • petroleum retention licence or lease.

You are required to provide supporting information and documents with your application.

All applications for a petroleum title must be lodged on the correct form and accompanied by the correct application fee.

Read more about fees, rents and other costs.

Contact

Contact the Energy Titles Unit for information and assistance by calling 08 8999 5263 or emailing energytitles.ditt@nt.gov.au.


Apply for an exploration permit

You can only apply for a petroleum exploration permit as part of a competitive tender through an acreage release process by the Minister for Mining and Industry.

Before applying, you should check whether the application will be affected by the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 or the Native Title Act 1993.

Read more about Aboriginal land and native title land.

You should also provide information to demonstrate that you, and any associated entity, are an appropriate person to hold the petroleum title. To find out more, go to the Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade (DITT) website.

Read about any current acreage release and how to apply on the DITT website.


Apply for a retention licence or lease

You must report all discoveries of petroleum in an exploration permit area to the minister.

If a discovery made on an exploration permit area is not currently commercially viable, you can apply for one of the following:

You must demonstrate the discovered resource is not commercially viable, but is likely to become so within 15 years.

A retention licence or lease is granted for five years and may be renewed if the resource still meets the non-commercial criteria.

When the resource is considered commercially viable, you must apply for a production licence.

Before you apply

Before applying for a retention licence or lease, you may need to consider the relevant legislation below.

Retention licence - Petroleum Act 1984

Before applying for a retention licence, you should check whether your application will be affected by the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 or the Native Title Act 1993.

Read more about Aboriginal land and native title land.

Retention lease - Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981

When you discover petroleum in your permit area, you may nominate the blocks which contain the petroleum to be declared as a location under the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981.

A location must be declared before you can apply for a retention lease over the area.

You must apply for a retention lease within two years of the location being declared. You can apply for this to be extended for another 2 years.

How to apply

The process for applying for a retention licence under the Petroleum Act 1984 or a retention lease under the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981 is the same.

You must apply in writing and provide the following information with your application:

  • details of the petroleum exploration permit history
  • detailed 5-year work program to develop the resource's commerciality
  • project feasibility reports
  • reports of reviews of exploration data
  • proposed seismic surveys and drill wells
  • other work designed to progress the licence/lease towards commercialisation
  • estimates of expenditure in nominal dollars
  • information demonstrating you, and any associated entity, is an appropriate person to hold the petroleum title

Fees

You must pay the fee when you submit your application.

The fee will not be refunded if the application is withdrawn or refused.

How to pay

You can use any of the following methods:

  • personal cheques or money orders made payable to the Receiver of Territory Monies
  • Visa or MasterCard - email energytitles.ditt@nt.gov.au
  • electronic funds transfer - call 08 8999 5263 for account details.

Use your company name as the reference and include evidence of the payment with your application.

Submit your application

Submit your completed application by post, email or in person.

For emailed applications, you must pay the fee by credit card. There is no need to post the original documents.

By post

Energy Development
Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade
GPO Box 4550
Darwin NT 0801

By email

energytitles.ditt@nt.gov.au

In person

Energy Development
Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade
Level 4 Paspalis Centrepoint building
48-50 Smith Street (Corner of Knuckey Street and Smith Street Mall)
Darwin NT 0800


Apply for a production licence

When a commercially viable petroleum discovery is made under your exploration permit or retention licence/lease, you have a legal right to apply for a production licence.

A production licence gives you exclusive rights to carry out petroleum recovery operations within the licence area, under approved resource management, activity and infrastructure plans.

A production licence is granted for 21 or 25 years.

Before you apply in coastal waters

When you discover petroleum in your coastal waters permit area, you may nominate the blocks which contain the petroleum to be declared as a location under the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981.

A location must be declared before you can apply for a production licence over the area.

You must apply for a production licence within 2 years of the location being declared. You can apply for this to be extended for another 2 years.

How to apply

The process for applying for a production licence is the same under the Petroleum Act 1984 and the Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1981.

You must apply in writing and your application must include all of the following:

  • a letter that makes specific reference to sections of the Act under which the application requires approval
  • your name and address
  • the designated number of each block within the application area
  • a map clearly indicating the application area and the boundaries of the existing exploration permit, production licence or retention lease areas
  • details of the petroleum exploration permit/retention lease history
  • evidence you have the technical and financial capacity to carry out the proposed work program and comply with the Act
  • information demonstrating you, and any associated entity, are an appropriate person to hold the petroleum title
  • proposed sharing arrangements if there are more than two applicants.

Fees

You must pay the relevant fee when submitting your application.

The fee will not be refunded if you withdraw the application or your application is refused.

How to pay

You can use any of the methods below to pay your fee:

  • personal cheques or money orders made payable to the Receiver of Territory Monies
  • Visa or MasterCard - email energytitles.ditt@nt.gov.au
  • electronic funds transfer - call 08 8999 5263 for account details.

Use your company name as the reference and include evidence of the payment with your application.

Submit your application

Submit your completed application by post, email or in person.

For emailed applications, you must pay the fee by credit card. There is no need to post the original documents.

By post or email

Attn: Senior Director Petroleum Operations
Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade
Energy Development
GPO Box 4550
Darwin NT 0801

energytitles.ditt@nt.gov.au

In person

Energy Development
Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade
Level 4 Paspalis Centrepoint building
48-50 Smith Street (Corner of Knuckey Street and Smith Street Mall)
Darwin NT 0800