Canada Petroleum Resources Act

Marginal note:Definitions

• 101 (1) In this section,

  delineation well

  delineation well means a well that is so located in relation to another well penetrating an accumulation of petroleum that there is a reasonable expectation that another portion of that accumulation will be penetrated by the first-mentioned well and that the drilling is necessary in order to determine the commercial value of the accumulation; (puits de délimitation)

  development well

  development well means a well that is so located in relation to another well penetrating an accumulation of petroleum that it is considered to be a well or part of a well drilled for the purpose of production or observation or for the injection or disposal of fluid into or from the accumulation; (puits d’exploitation)

  engineering research or feasibility study

  engineering research or feasibility study includes work undertaken to facilitate the design or to analyse the viability of engineering technology, systems or schemes to be used in the exploration for or the development, production or transportation of petroleum on frontier lands; (recherches ou études techniques)

  environmental study

  environmental study means work pertaining to the measurement or statistical evaluation of the physical, chemical and biological elements of the lands, oceans or coastal zones, including winds, waves, tides, currents, precipitation, ice cover and movement, icebergs, pollution effects, flora and fauna both onshore and offshore, human activity and habitation and any related matters; (études de l’environnement)

  experimental project

  experimental project means work or activity involving the utilization of methods or equipment that are untried or unproven; (opération expérimentale)

  exploratory well

  exploratory well means a well drilled on a geological feature on which a significant discovery has not been made; (puits d’exploration)

  geological work

  geological work means work, in the field or laboratory, involving the collection, examination, processing or other analysis of lithological, paleontological or geochemical materials recovered from the surface or subsurface or the seabed or its subsoil of any frontier lands and includes the analysis and interpretation of mechanical well logs; (travaux de géologie)

  geophysical work

  geophysical work means work involving the indirect measurement of the physical properties of rocks in order to determine the depth, thickness, structural configuration or history of deposition thereof and includes the processing, analysis and interpretation of material or data obtained from such work; (travaux de géophysique)

  geotechnical work

  geotechnical work means work, in the field or laboratory, undertaken to determine the physical properties of materials recovered from the surface or subsurface or the seabed or its subsoil of any frontier lands; (travaux de géotechnique)

  well site seabed survey

  well site seabed survey means a survey pertaining to the nature of the surface or subsurface or the seabed or its subsoil of any frontier lands in the area of the proposed drilling site in respect of a well and to the conditions of those lands that may affect the safety or efficiency of drilling operations; (levé marin)

  well termination date

  well termination date means the date on which a well has been abandoned, completed or suspended in accordance with any applicable regulations respecting the drilling for petroleum made under the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act. (date d’abandon du puits)

• Marginal note:Privileged information or documentation

  (2) Subject to this section, information or documentation is privileged if it is provided for the purposes of this Act or the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act, other than Part 0.1 of that Act, or any regulation made under either Act, or for the purposes of Part 8 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act, whether or not the information or documentation is required to be provided.

• Marginal note:Disclosure

  (2.1) Subject to this section, information or documentation that is privileged under subsection (2) shall not knowingly be disclosed without the consent in writing of the person who provided it, except for the purposes of the administration or enforcement of this Act, the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act or Part 8 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act or for the purposes of legal proceedings relating to its administration or enforcement.

• Marginal note:Production and evidence

  (3) No person shall be required to produce or give evidence relating to any information or documentation that is privileged under subsection (2) in connection with any legal proceedings, other than proceedings relating to the administration or enforcement of this Act, the Oil and Gas Production and Conservation Act or Part 8 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act.

• Marginal note:Registration of documents

  (4) For greater certainty, this section does not apply to a document that has been registered under Part VIII.

• Marginal note:Disclosure pursuant to resource management and revenue sharing agreements

  (5) Information or documentation that is privileged under subsection (2) may be disclosed to any government of a province or to any organization representing any aboriginal people of Canada, where such disclosure is made pursuant to an agreement between the Government of Canada and the government of that province or that organization respecting resource management and revenue sharing in relation to activities respecting the exploration for or the production of petroleum carried out on any frontier lands.

• Marginal note:Idem

  (6) The recipient of information or documentation disclosed pursuant to an agreement referred to in subsection (5) shall not disclose that information or documentation except as otherwise provided in this section.

• Marginal note:Disclosure — governments and agencies

  (6.1) The Canadian Energy Regulator may disclose any information or documentation that it obtains under this Act or the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act — to officials of the Government of Canada, the government of a province or a foreign government or to the representatives of any of their agencies — for the purposes of a federal, provincial or foreign law, as the case may be, that deals primarily with a petroleum-related work or activity, including the exploration for and the management, administration and exploitation of petroleum resources, if

  • (a) the government or agency undertakes to keep the information or documentation confidential and not to disclose it without the Regulator’s written consent;

  • (b) the information or documentation is disclosed in accordance with any conditions agreed to by the Regulator and the government or agency; and

  • (c) in the case of disclosure to a foreign government or agency, the Minister consents in writing.

• Marginal note:Disclosure — Minister

  (6.2) The Canadian Energy Regulator may disclose to the Minister the information or documentation that it has disclosed or intends to disclose under subsection (6.1), but the Minister is not to further disclose that information or documentation unless the Regulator consents in writing to that disclosure or the Minister is required by an Act of Parliament to disclose that information or documentation.

• Marginal note:Consent

  (6.3) For the purposes of paragraph (6.1)(a) and subsection (6.2), the Canadian Energy Regulator may consent to the further disclosure of information or documentation only if the Regulator itself is authorized under this section to disclose it.

• Marginal note:Information that may be disclosed

  (7) Subsection (2) does not apply in respect of the following classes of information or documentation obtained as a result of carrying on a work or activity that is authorized under the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act, namely, information or documentation in respect of

  • (a) an exploratory well, where the information or documentation is obtained as a direct result of drilling the well and if two years have passed since the well termination date of that well;

  • (b) a delineation well, where the information or documentation is obtained as a direct result of drilling the well and if the later of

    • (i) two years since the well termination date of the relevant exploratory well, and

    • (ii) ninety days since the well termination date of the delineation well,

    have passed;

  • (c) a development well, where the information or documentation is obtained as a direct result of drilling the well and if the later of

    • (i) two years since the well termination date of the relevant exploratory well, and

    • (ii) sixty days since the well termination date of the development well,

    have passed;

  • (d) geological work or geophysical work performed on or in relation to any frontier lands,

    • (i) in the case of a well site seabed survey where the well has been drilled, after the expiration of the period referred to in paragraph (a) or the later period referred to in subparagraph (b)(i) or (ii) or (c)(i) or (ii), according to whether paragraph (a), (b) or (c) is applicable in respect of that well, or

    • (ii) in any other case, after the expiration of five years following the date of completion of the work;

  • (e) any engineering research or feasibility study or experimental project, including geotechnical work, carried out on or in relation to any frontier lands,

    • (i) where it relates to a well and the well has been drilled, after the expiration of the period referred to in paragraph (a) or the later period referred to in subparagraph (b)(i) or (ii) or (c)(i) or (ii), according to whether paragraph (a), (b) or (c) is applicable in respect of that well, or

    • (ii) in any other case, after the expiration of five years following the date of completion of the research, study or project or after the reversion of the lands to Crown reserve lands, whichever occurs first;

  • (f) any contingency plan formulated in respect of emergencies arising as a result of any work or activity authorized under the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act;

  • (g) diving work, weather observations or the status of operational activities or of the development of or production from a pool or field;

  • (g.1) accidents, incidents or petroleum spills, to the extent necessary to permit a person or body to produce and to distribute or publish a report for the administration of this Act, or of the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act, in respect of the accident, incident or spill;

  • (h) any study funded from an account established under subsection 76(1), if the study has been completed; and

  • (i) an environmental study, other than a study referred to in paragraph (h),

    • (i) where it relates to a well and the well has been drilled, after the expiration of the period referred to in paragraph (a) or the later period referred to in subparagraph (b)(i) or (ii) or (c)(i) or (ii), according to whether paragraph (a), (b) or (c) is applicable in respect of that well, or

    • (ii) in any other case, if five years have passed since the completion of the study.

• Marginal note:Applicant and proposed work or activity

  (8) Subsection (2) does not apply in respect of information regarding the applicant for an operating licence or authorization under subsection 5(1) of the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act, or the scope, purpose, location, timing and nature of the proposed work or activity for which the authorization is sought.

• Marginal note:Public hearing

  (9) Subsection (2) does not apply in respect of information or documentation provided for the purposes of a public hearing conducted under section 5.331 of the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act.

• Marginal note:Safety or environmental protection

  (10) Subject to section 101.1, the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator or a person designated under section 4.1 of the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act may disclose all or part of any information or documentation related to safety or environmental protection that is provided in relation to an application for an operating licence or authorization under subsection 5(1) of the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act or to an operating licence or authorization that is issued under that subsection or provided in accordance with any regulation made under that Act. The Commission or person is not, however, permitted to disclose information or documentation if they are satisfied that

  • (a) disclosure of it could reasonably be expected to result in a material loss or gain to a person, or to prejudice their competitive position, and the potential harm resulting from the disclosure outweighs the public interest in making the disclosure;

  • (b) it is financial, commercial, scientific or technical information or documentation that is confidential and has been consistently treated as such by a person who would be directly affected by its disclosure, and for which the person’s interest in confidentiality outweighs the public interest in its disclosure; or

  • (c) there is a real and substantial risk that disclosure of it will impair the security of pipelines, as defined in section 2 of the Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act, buildings, installations, vessels, vehicles, aircraft or systems, including computer or communication systems, used for any work or activity in respect of which that Act applies — or methods employed to protect them — and the need to prevent its disclosure outweighs the public interest in its disclosure.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (11) Subsections (8) to (10) do not apply in respect of the classes of information or documentation described in paragraphs (7)(a) to (e) and (i).