The Gas (Applications for Licences and Extensions and Restrictions of Licences) Regulations 2019

• Citation: S.I. 2019/1024
• Sections: 8

Section 1 Citation, commencement and revocation

(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Gas (Applications for Licences and Extensions and Restrictions of Licences) Regulations 2019 and come into force on 5th July 2019.

(2) The Gas (Applications for Licences and Extensions and Restrictions of Licences) Regulations 2010 (“the 2010 Regulations”) are revoked.

Section 2 Transitional provisions

(1) Where an application has been made under the 2010 Regulations but at the date upon which these Regulations come into force the application has neither been granted nor refused, the application shall be treated thereafter as having been made under these Regulations.

(2) In relation to an application to which paragraph (1) applies, the Authority, where necessary, will require applicants to supplement their application with additional information to meet the requirements of these Regulations.

(3) Where, in relation to an application to which paragraph (1) applies, the applicant, before the coming into force of these Regulations, published a notice of the application in accordance with the 2010 Regulations, the requirements of these Regulations as regards publication shall be taken to have been met.

Section 3 Interpretation

(1) In these Regulations—

“the 2000 Act” means the Utilities Act 2000

“the 2004 Act” means the Energy Act 2004 ;

“the Act” means the Gas Act 1986;

“application” means an application for a licence, an application for an extension of a licence or an application for a restriction of a licence under the Act and references to an application in respect of a licence shall be construed accordingly;

“the Authority” means the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority established by section 1 of the 2000 Act;

“domestic premises” means premises used wholly or mainly for domestic purposes;

“extension”, in relation to a transporter licence, means an extension of the licence under section 7(4) of the Act and, in relation to a supplier licence or a shipper licence, means an extension of the licence under section 7A(4) of the Act ;

“interconnector licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7ZA(1) of the Act ;

“principal undertaking” means an undertaking within the meaning of section 1161 of the Companies Act 2006 ;)

“related person” means

in relation to an applicant who is the principal undertaking, a parent or subsidiary undertaking of the principal undertaking or a subsidiary undertaking of the parent undertaking of the principal undertaking, in each case within the meaning of section 1162 and Schedule 7 of the Companies Act 2006; and

in relation to any applicant (including such an undertaking), a connected person of the applicant within the meaning of section 286 of the Taxation of Chargeable Gains Act 1992 ;

“restriction”, in relation to a transporter licence, means a restriction of the licence under section 7(4A) of the Act and, in relation to a supplier licence or a shipper licence, means a restriction of the licence under section 7A(6) of the Act;

“shares”, in relation to an applicant with share capital, means allotted shares; in relation to an applicant with capital but no share capital, means rights to share in the capital of the applicant; and in relation to an applicant without share capital, means interests (i) conferring any right to share in the profits or liability to contribute to the losses of the applicant; and (ii) giving rise to an obligation to contribute to the debts or expenses of the applicant in the event of winding up;

“shipper licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7A(2) of the Act;

“signed” includes signed in a manner which would for the purposes of section 7 of the Electronic Communications Act 2000 be an electronic signature;

“significant managerial responsibility or influence” means where a person plays a role in—

the making of decisions about how the whole or a substantial part of an undertaking’s activities are to be managed or organised, or

the actual managing or organising of the whole or a substantial part of those activities;

“supplier licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7A(1) of the Act;

“Supplier of Last Resort event” means when a direction is issued by the Authority pursuant to standard condition 8 of either a gas supply licence granted under section 7A(1) of the Act or an electricity supply licence granted under section 6(1)(d) of the Electricity Act 1989 ;

“transporter licence” means a licence granted or to be granted under section 7 of the Act; and

“ultimate holding company” means a holding company (within the meaning of sections 1159 and 1160 of the Companies Act 2006 ) of the applicant which is not itself a subsidiary of another company, which is in the position to control, or exercise significant influence over, a policy of the applicant by virtue of rights under contractual arrangements or rights of ownership which are held by the company or of which the company is a beneficiary.

(2) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, a reference to a standard condition is a reference, —

(a) in relation to a shipper licence, a supplier licence or a transporter licence, to a standard condition which is determined under section 81(2) of the 2000 Act ; or

(b) in relation to an interconnector licence, to a standard condition which is determined under section 150(1) of the 2004 Act,

subject to any modifications of the standard conditions made under Part I of the Act, the 2000 Act, or the 2004 Act, after the determination under those sections.

(3) In these Regulations —

(a) any reference to the Schedule is a reference to the Schedule of these Regulations; and

(b) any reference to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph bearing that number in the regulation in which the reference occurs.

(4) These Regulations do not apply to applications in respect of—

(a) a “ smart meter communication licence ” as defined in section 7AB(1) of the Act; or

(b) a “ code manager licence ” as defined in section 7AC(1) of the Act.

Section 4 Manner of Application

An application shall be:

(a) made in writing, addressed to the Authority and delivered or sent by prepaid post to the Authority at its principal address or sent by electronic mail to an address specified by the Authority;

(b) signed and dated by or on behalf of the applicant, stating, where signed on behalf of the applicant, the capacity of the signatory; and

(c) accompanied by the prescribed fee referred to in regulation 7 of these Regulations.

Section 5 Form of application

(1) An application shall be made by completing in full the form shown in the Schedule.

(2) The application may not be considered by the Authority unless it is made in accordance with this regulation 5.

(3) The Authority may make further enquiries of the applicant about any matter connected with the application and may request additional information or documentation as set out in the form in the Schedule.

Section 6 Additional information and documents to accompany application

(1) Subject to paragraphs (2), (3) and (4)—

(a) an application in respect of a supplier licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified for that licence in the form in the Schedule;

(b) an application in respect of a shipper licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified for that licence in the form in the Schedule;

(c) an application in respect of a transporter licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified for that licence in the form in the Schedule; and

(d) an application in respect of an interconnector licence shall be accompanied by the information and documents specified for that licence in the form in the Schedule.

(2) The obligation imposed by paragraph (1) shall, to the extent that information and documents are specified in the Schedule by reference to, or in relation to, a standard condition, apply—

(a) subject to paragraph (3), in the case of an application for a licence, other than for a supplier licence of the type described in section 8(2) of the Act , as if the standard condition in question were to be included and have effect in any licence granted as a result of the application; and

(b) in the case of an application for an extension or restriction of a licence, in relation to such of the standard conditions in question as have been included and have effect in that licence.

(3) Where a modification to any standard condition is requested in an application made in accordance with these Regulations, the obligation imposed by paragraph (2)(a) shall be modified accordingly.

(4) The obligation imposed by paragraph (1)(a), (b) and (c) in relation to an application for an extension or restriction of a licence shall only apply to the extent that the information and documents differ from or add to the most recent information and documents provided in relation to an application made in accordance with these Regulations or in pursuance of a condition of the applicant’s licence.

Section 7 Application Fees

(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the prescribed fee in relation to an application of the description specified in the first column of the Table in the form in the Schedule shall be the corresponding fee specified in the second column of that Table.

(2) Where more than one fee would, but for this paragraph, be payable in respect of a particular application, the prescribed fee shall be the higher or highest such fee.

Section 8 Publication of notice of application

(1) The period prescribed for the purpose of section 7B(2) of the Act (notice of applications) is ten working days from the date the applicant is notified by the Authority that the application is duly made (“the prescribed period”).

(2) The prescribed manner of publication for that purpose shall be either by—

(a) requesting the Authority to place the notice on the website address of the Authority (at “www.ofgem.gov.uk” or such other website address as may be notified to the applicant by the Authority in writing); or

(b) publishing the notice on the website address of the applicant and requesting the Authority to place a link to the applicant’s website address on the website address of the Authority (at “www.ofgem.gov.uk” or such other website address as may be notified to the applicant by the Authority in writing).

(3) Where an application is for the restriction of a licence, the applicant shall also ensure that notice of application is published within the prescribed period in such newspapers as are calculated to ensure that the notice is circulated throughout the area to which the proposed restriction relates.